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LAWRENCE  J.  GUTTER 

Collection  of  Chicogoono 

THE   UNIVERSITY   OF   ILLINOIS 
AT  CHICAGO 

The  University  Library 


PATRICK  JOSEPH  HEALY 


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Patrick  Joseph  Healy 


FOUNDER  OF  THE  HOUSE  OF 
LYON  &  HEALY 


An  ApiJr^rtattnn 


**  There  is  something  in  business 
besides  money.'' ^ 


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1907 


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Illustrations 6 

Foreword 7 

Patrick  Joseph  Healy      -         -         -  9 

Excerpts  from  Tributes        -         -         -  83 


3)UuBtratt0n0 


Portrait  at  the  age  of  56 
Portrait  at  the  age  of  1 8 
Early    Specimen   of   Mr. 

Portrait  at  the  age  of  33 
A  Letter  of  1865 
A  Family  Group 
Sketch  from  life  in  189 1 
Portrait  at  the  age  of  62 
The  Veteran 


Frontispiece 
Opposite  p.  9 
Healy's  Writing 
Opposite  p.  17 
Opposite  p.  23 
Opposite  p.  43 
Opposite  p.  61 
Opposite  p.  73 
Opposite  p.  79 
Opposite  p.  83 


fovttootn 

THIS  little  book  falls  far  short  of  what  we 
should  like  to  make  it,  but  our  beloved 
President  carried  modesty  to  such  an  ex- 
treme that  he  scrupulously  avoided  all  occa- 
sions, all  decorations,  and  all  public  honors. 
Moreover,  he  deprecated  any  appreciation  of 
himself,  and  during  his  lifetime  quietly  defeated 
all  efforts  to  give  public  utterance  to  the  praise 
that  was  his  just  due. 

But  even  a  very  incomplete  record  of  such 
a  noble  and  useful  life  will  serve  two  purposes : 
it  will  confer  a  benefit  on  him  who  reads  it,  and 
it  will  testify  to  the  undying  admiration  with 
which  we  regard  our  beloved  associate. 
Chicago,  March  17,  1907. 


F.  J.  HEALY  AT  THE  AGE  OF  i8 


patrlcfe  31ojsep]^  i^ealt 


CHAPTER  ONE 

PATRICK  JOSEPH  HEALY,  the 
founder  of  the  music  house  that  bears  his 
name,  was  born  on  a  farm  in  Ireland, 
March  17,  in  the  year  1840.  His  father's  little 
house  was  situated  about  two  miles  from  the 
town  of  Burnfort,  in  the  county  of  Cork.  This 
small  farm  differed  in  no  way  from  hundreds  of 
its  neighbors.  The  usual  round  of  monotonous 
duties  engrossed  the  family,  and  of  pleasures 
there  were  few.  But  little  Patrick  was  some- 
times taken  to  market  by  his  father  on  the 
jaunting-car  of  a  Saturday,  and  so  could  count 
the  weeks  by  that  great  event.  His  father  and 
mother  were  both  of  the  sturdiest  type  of  the 
rural  Irish,  and  he  found  himself  rich  in 
brothers  and  sisters,  for  he  was  the  youngest 
of  thirteen  children. 

At  the  time  of  the  child's  burth,  his  father 
was  seventy-five  years  old,  or  perhaps  it  might 
better  be  said  seventy-five  years  young,  for 
Healy,  Sr.,  lived  to  be  103,  and  then  fell  asleep 
peacefully  while  sitting  in  the  sunshine  of  his 

9 


^atrtcft  9^0#epl)  i^ealp 


Boston  doorway.  He  had  never  known  sick- 
ness, and  only  at  the  last  had  his  activity  di- 
minished. 

Yielding  to  the  inevitable,  the  Healy  family 
gave  up  the  struggle  to  make  headway  amid 
the  pretty  but  impoverished  vales  of  Burn- 
fort,  and  when  Patrick  was  ten  years  of  age 
they  planted  his  small  feet  in  the  classic  city 
of  Boston.  He  had  already  acquired  a  re- 
markable stock  of  knowledge  for  one  so  young, 
and  his  first  day  in  school  in  America  was 
signalized  by  a  flying  jump  from  the  primary 
room  into  the  highest  grade  of  the  grammar 
school.  His  spelling  was  a  source  of  wonder- 
ment to  the  small  Bostonians,  and  exceeding 
delight  to  the  teacher.  For,  on  the  first  spell- 
down, when  he  spelled  "shew,"  and  the 
class  objected,  the  teacher  smilingly  remarked: 
"That's  correct;  that's  the  way  Healy  and  I 
always  spelled  it  when  we  were  boys  together." 
This  teacher,  William  T.  Adams,  to  whose  dis- 
cernment and  appreciation  young  Healy  owed 
so  much,  was  afterwards  widely  known  as 
"Oliver  Optic,"  the  author  of  the  widely 
known  series  of  boys'  books. 

In  the  neighborhood  in  which  young  Healy 

ID 


^atticft  ^o$tp^  !^ealp 


lived  there  was  a  struggling  music  teacher, 
Silas  P.  Bancroft,  a  man  with  a  great  heart  and 
a  desire  to  do  good  far  beyond  his  slender 
means.  He  took  a  fancy  to  the  bright,  eager- 
faced  school-boy,  and  employed  him  to  blow 
the  organ  for  him  on  Wednesday  and  Saturday 
afternoons  and  soon  the  spirit  of  the  lad  aroused 
Mr.  Bancroft  to  seek  an  opening  for  him  in 
the  great  world  of  business.  One  day  that 
young  Healy  had  spent  the  hours  after  school 
in  bringing  home  wood  in  a  wheelbarrow,  from  a 
neighboring  yard,  Mr.  Bancroft  marched  in 
and  announced  that  he  had  gotten  a  place  for 
his  proteg^.  It  was  in  a  music  store.  The  boy 
was  now  fourteen  and  his  parents,  with  that 
ardent  desire  to  give  their  youngest  child  the 
education  that  they  themselves  were  denied  be- 
cause of  poverty  in  the  old  land,  were  prepared 
to  make  any  sacrifice  to  enable  the  Joseph  of 
the  family  to  enter  college,  but  young  Healy's 
filial  desire  to  make  easy  his  parents'  declining 
days,  coupled  with  his  passion  for  a  commer- 
cial life,  carried  the  day.  So  the  morning  of 
the  next  day,  September  24,  1854,  a  full  hour 
before  Mr.  George  P.  Reed,  the  music  dealer, 
got    down    to  business,   the   new    errand-boy 

II 


^atricft  3^o^epl)  I^ealp 


sat  on  the  stool  nearest  to  the  door,  kicking 
his  feet  against  the  counter  and  ready  to  jump 
down  at  the  entrance  of  any  man  who  looked 
in  the  least  as  though  he  might  own  the  store. 

Young  Healy  put  in  a  year  or  two  as  errand- 
boy  and  stock-boy,  and  then  was  given  the 
duties  of  a  full-fledged  clerk.  Every  music 
teacher  in  Boston  came  to  know  that  the  way 
to  get  what  one  wanted  in  Reed's  (afterwards 
Tolman's)  was  to  find  young  Healy.  He  knew 
the  stock  backwards  and  forwards,  what  they 
had,  what  they  did  n't  have,  and  what  they  could 
send  out  for.  He  worked  in  this  stock  from 
early  morning  till  night,  saving  only  an  hour  for 
himself  at  noon  in  which  to  visit  the  reading- 
room  of  the  Boston  Public  Library.  He  got 
tired  sometimes;  one  summer  he  had  to  rest 
on  the  landings  before  he  could  drag  himself  up 
to  the  reading-room,  but  he  never  lost  cour- 
age. Rowing  upon  the  Charles  River  even- 
ings and  on  holidays,  always  brought  back  his 
native  vigor. 

The  house  with  which  he  was  identified 
changed  hands,  but  young  Healy  had  found  his 
life's  work  in  the  music  business,  and  the 
changes  made  but  little   difference  in  his  im- 

12 


^atticft  S^o^eplj  i^ealp 


mediate  duties.  It  did,  however,  open  his  eyes 
to  the  fact  that  if  he  would  secure  a  solid  foot- 
ing in  the  commercial  world  he  must  find  a 
new  field.  About  this  time  Oliver  Ditson  and 
John  C.  Haynes  had  sent  John  Church  out 
West  to  take  over  the  Cincinnati  branch  of 
their  business,  and  the  Ditson  affairs  with 
the  Chicago  connection,  Smith  &  Nixon, 
were  also  approaching  a  crisis.  But  now  the 
Civil  War  diverted  men's  lines  of  thought  for 
a  brief  period,  and  new  plans  lagged  while  the 
country's  life  was  in  peril.  Young  Healy  was 
one  of  the  first  to  respond  to  the  call  for  vol- 
unteers, Alas!  his  short  stature  and  light 
weight  caused  his  rejection  with  a  promptness 
that  was  startling.  He  had  to  comfort  him 
only  the  thought  that  even  the  greatest  heroes 
would  have  come  to  naught  if  they  could  n't 
even  get  started.  Recruiting  officers  from 
time  immemorial  have  used  charts,  rather  than 
brains,  in  enlisting  men,  and  quantity,  not 
quality,  is  what  the  charts  provide  for. 

In  1864,  Oliver  Ditson  sent  for  Mr.  Healy 
and  his  fellow-clerk,  Mr.  Lyon,  and  offered 
them  a  choice  of  cities,  in  which  he  would 
set  them  up  in  business  so  as  to  serve  as  an  out- 

13 


^atrich  S^o^epf)  I^ealp 


let  for  Ditson  productions.  St.  Louis,  Chicago, 
and  San  Francisco  were  available.  Mr.  Healy 
visited  St.  Louis,  which  was  then  larger  than 
Chicago,  and  made  a  study  of  the  latter  place, 
but  did  not  go  to  San  Francisco.  The  far 
Western  town  seemed  to  be  too  great  a  distance 
from  good  old  Boston.  Mr.  Healy,  on  his  re- 
turn, reported  that  he  had  selected  Chicago, 
showing  thus  early  in  his  career  his  wonderful 
capacity  for  correctly  reading  the  future.  So 
in  1864,  as  the  country  emerged  from  scenes  of 
bloodshed  to  a  grateful  peace,  the  new  firm  was 
launched  upon  the  rising  tide  of  business  pros- 
perity. The  firm  name  became  Lyon  &  Healy 
inasmuch  as  Mr.  Lyon  was  the  senior  by  sev- 
eral years. 

High  spirits!  When  Mr.  Healy  reached  Chi- 
cago, in  May,  1864,  he  felt  like  Alexander  of 
old.  Already  he  had  conquered  fortune.  But 
when  on  closer  acquaintance  he  found  that  city 
to  be  a  muddy  country  town,  part  of  it  stagger- 
ing on  stilts,  and  the  rest  reposing  placidly 
on  the  bosom  of  a  swamp,  some  of  his  enthu- 
siasm oozed  away.  Mr.  Lyon,  after  going  up 
and  down  many  flights  of  stairs,  which  were 
a  part   of  the   sidewalk  in  a  single  block   on 

14 


^atticft  S^o^epf)  J^ealp 


the  principal  street,  said:  "Let's  go  back  to 
Boston,  where,  at  least,  we  won't  break  our 
necks."  But  P.  J.  Healy  steadied  himself  on 
the  rickety  stairs,  took  a  firmer  grip  on  the 
hand-rail,  and  said: 
**No,  I'll  never  go  back." 


15 


D 


CHAPTER  TWO 

GREAT  success  is  not  accomplished  by 
the  man  who  possesses  a  grand  idea,  but 
by  him  who  is  possessed  by  a  nearby, 
definite  purpose.  It  is  the  daily  carrying  out 
of  small  means  toward  a  well-defined  end  that 
lays  the  foundation  for  the  edifice  that  shall 
eventually  tower  toward  the  heavens  and  be- 
come the  landmark  for  thousands.  The  guid- 
ing thought  of  P.  J.  Healy  in  the  early  days  of 
the  house  that  bears  his  name  was  that  he  must 
justify  the  trust  reposed  in  him  by  his  East- 
ern friends.  He  had  been  given  charge  over 
what  was  to  him  in  those  times  a  very  large 
sum  of  money.  It  was  his  to  fritter  away  in 
foolish  or  unwise  business  moves,  to  preserve 
intact  by  easy-going,  spiritless  merchandising, 
or  to  increase  a  hundred-fold  by  wide-awake 
and  daring  enterprise,  coupled  with  unflinching 
attention  to  details.  Day  and  night  he  had  but 
the  one  thought,  —  to  prove  himself  a  faithful 
steward  to  those  who  had  reposed  confidence 
in  him.  He  began  each  business  day  by  per- 
sonally opening  all  the  mail,  making  credits, 
and  adjusting  grievances  with  the  rapidity  of 

17 


^atticfe  S^o^ejjfj  I^ealp 


an  automatic  machine.  After  a  day  crowded 
to  the  utmost  with  every  conceivable  form  of 
business  exertion,  from  engaging  clerks  to  at- 
tending to  the  banking,  he  finished  his  labors 
close  on  to  midnight  in  his  own  home  by  work 
upon  statistics,  etc.  Such  activity  could  not  fail 
to  bring  results.  Oliver  Ditson  had  said,  by 
way  of  encouragement :  "  If  you  have  good  luck, 
in  ten  years'  time  you  will  do  a  business  of 
$100,000  per  year."  The  new  firm  passed  that 
figure  before  the  first  twelvemonth  had  ex- 
pired. Yet  Mr.  Healy  found  time  to  make  a 
few  friends,  to  give  long  and  careful  attention 
to  the  problems  that  needed  it,  and  from  the 
first  to  bestow  kindnesses  with  an  open  hand 
upon  all  who  asked  either  his  advice  or  his 
assistance. 

In  those  days,  one  of  the  best  known  of  Chi- 
cago's capitalists  was  a  certain  old  gentleman, 
who  chanced  to  be  Lyon  &  Healy's  first  land- 
lord. One  day,  after  the  new  firm  had  been 
established  three  or  four  years,  he  dropped 
in  for  a  short  chat.  ''Healy,"  said  he,  "don't 
you  want  to  borrow  some  money  to  help  in- 
crease your  business?" 

"  I  could  n't  afford  to  pay  ten  per  cent,"  re- 
18 


^atricft  3^a^epl)  i^calp 


joined  Mr.  Healy;  "and  that's  what  the  trade 
tell  me  they  have  to  give  you." 

''Well,"  replied  the  old  gentleman  in  a  whis- 
per, and  with  his  bony  finger  to  his  cautious 
lips,  ''it  won't  cost    you  ten  per  cent." 

And  this  was  probably  as  high  a  compHment 
as  the  old  gentleman  ever  paid  to  any  one. 

To  Lyon  &  Healy's  one  day  came  a  pale 
and  worn  man,  carrying  a  violin  under  one 
arm  and  a  roll  of  manuscript  music  in  his 
hand.  He  was  tired  and  discouraged,  for  his 
regular  publishers  would  not  advance  him  fur- 
ther royalties.  He  approached  Silas  G.  Pratt 
(since  so  well  known  as  a  composer  and  conduc- 
tor, then  a  bright  young  salesman),  and  asked 
him  if  he  could  close  a  contract  with  Mr.  Healy. 
Pratt  said,  "We  have  talked  somewhat  of  get- 
ting out  a  new  Sunday-school  song  book,  and, 
if  you  like,  I  will  ask  Mr.  Healy  to  give  you 
an  audience." 

As  Mr.  Healy  came  out  from  the  ofl&ce  into 
the  store  to  hear  some  of  the  musician's  ideas, 
he  took  in  the  situation  at  a  glance.  The  del- 
icate, refined  face  of  the  musician,  drawn  with 
a  deep  anxiety,  told  its  own  story  of  financial 
distress,  and  of  the  thousand  rebuffs  that  had 

19 


^atricft  S^o^epl)  l^ealp 


broken  the  heart  of  one  of  the  gentlest  men 
that  ever  hved. 

When  his  music  came  to  an  end,  the  stranger 
asked  anxiously:   "How  do  you  like  it?" 

"That's  all  right,"  responded  Mr.  Healy, 
and  he  then  and  there  contracted  for  a  work  to 
be  known  as  "The  Signet  Ring." 

About  a  year  afterwards  people  began  com- 
ing in  to  ask  for  "The  Signet  Ring,"  and 
chiefly  because  of  one  certain  song  it  contained. 
At  first,  no  attention  was  paid  to  these  indica- 
tions, but  finally  the  song  was  printed  separately, 
and  edition  after  edition  was  published  and  sold. 

In  the  mean  time,  Pratt  had  gone  to  Europe 
to  study.  Three  years  passed,  and  he  returned 
to  New  York  City.  "As  the  boat  came  up  to 
the  pier,"  he  says,  "the  band  was  playing  a 
simple  tune  that  seemed  familiar.  As  I  alighted 
the  porters  were  humming  this  same  air,  then 
when  I  reached  the  street  the  newsboys  were 
whistling  it.  At  the  first  corner  a  street  mu- 
sician was  singing  it,  and  then  it  flashed  over 
me  all  at  once  that  this  was  the  song  that  had 
made  the  success  of  Lyon  &  Healy's  *  Signet 
Ring.'  It  was,  in  short,  the  song  that  was  to 
become  one  of  the  most  popular  ever  written, 

20 


^atricft  ^o$epf^  i^ealp 


the  song  that,  but  for  the  great  heart  of  Patrick 
J.  Healy,  might  never  have  seen  the  light  of 
day,  "The  Sweet  By  and  By." 

Those  were  brave  days  in  the  *6o's,  full  of 
joyous  business  activity,  and  full,  too,  of  the 
domestic  happiness  that  rounds  out  a  man's 
life,  for  in  his  bride,  Mary  Grifl&th,  whom 
he  married  October  31,  1863,  P.  J.  Healy  found 
a  companion  worthy  to  share  his  high  aims 
and  his  large  ambition. 

She  was  a  descendant  of  the  Griffiths  of 
Wales,  the  clan  so  well  known  in  song  and 
story;  and  to  intellectual  gifts  of  a  high  order 
she  added  an  amount  of  practical  common  sense 
such  as  is  given  to  few  women.  Self-denial 
was  a  part  of  her  creed,  and  she  ordered  every- 
thing within  her  household  with  a  single,  steady 
view  of  enabling  her  husband  to  achieve  the 
success  upon  which  he  had  set  his  heart. 

Of  the  children  sent  to  bless  this  happy 
union,  three  sons  survived,  James,  Raymond, 
and  Paul.  Mr.  Healy's  home  life  was  ideal, 
his  business  began  to  prosper  beyond  his  fond- 
est dreams,  the  sky  was  without  a  cloud. 


21 


p.  J.  HEALV  AT  THE  AGE  OF 


CHAPTER  THREE 

ON  Sunday,  September  4,  1870,  in  the  af- 
ternoon of  a  bright  Indian  summer  day, 
the  fire  bells  clanged  a  call.  The  new 
and  handsome  Drake  block,  at  Washington 
Street  and  Wabash  Avenue,  was  in  flames. 
When  Mr.  Healy  arrived,  a  short  time  after  the 
conflagation  began,  he  found  the  beautiful  store 
on  the  corner,  to  which  Lyon  &  Healy  had  re- 
cently moved,  and  which  had  already  become 
the  Mecca  for  the  music-loving  people  of  the 
West,  a  pile  of  smoking  ashes.  But  the  energy 
and  ability  that  could  create  a  great  institution 
from  nothing  was  not  to  be  balked  by  a  catas- 
trophe of  this  kind.  At  an  impromptu  council, 
held  while  the  flames  were  still  smouldering,  it 
was  decided  to  go  right  ahead  with  the  business. 
With  the  utmost  vigor  the  task  was  under- 
taken of  assembling  the  thousands  and  thou- 
sands of  items  that  go  to  make  up  a  general 
music  stock.  Within  a  short  time,  a  perma- 
nent location  was  found  at  150  South  Clark 
Street,  and  these  spacious  quarters  were  crowded 
to  the  utmost  with  a  splendid  new  stock.  Then, 
when  the  pressure  was  over,  Mr.  Healy  gave 

23 


^atricft  S^D^epI)  i^ealp 


evidence  of  how  severe  had  been  the  blow, 
coming,  as  it  did,  upon  the  top  of  exertions 
that  for  years  had  taxed  his  strength  to  the 
utmost.  He  was  forced  by  nervous  exhaus- 
tion to  give  up  business  entirely,  and  for  some 
weeks  the  physicians  held  out  small  hopes  of 
his  recovery.  Doubtless  the  months  that  he 
spent  within  the  Valley  of  the  Shadow  of  Death 
had  much  to  do  with  his  attitude  ever  after- 
ward toward  the  sick  or  suffering.  His  thought- 
fulness  and  tenderness  for  others  from  this  time 
forward  became  one  of  his  chief  characteris- 
tics. Many  a  pale  clerk  owed  his  or  her  lease 
of  life  to  Mr.  Healy's  watchful  eye  and  princely 
generosity. 

In  the  spring  of  187 1,  Mr.  Healy  returned 
from  a  long  trip  through  the  West  with  health 
fully  restored  and  energies  once  more  at  their 
best.  Lyon  &  Healy  now  took  over  the  piano 
business  of  Smith  &  Nixon,  combining  it  with 
their  original  sheet-music  and  book  business, 
and  Mr.  Healy  had  taken  another  step  in  his 
great  project  of  building  up  an  establishment 
that  should  contain  "Everything  Known  in 
Music."  Some  years  before,  Mr.  Healy  had  es- 
tablished a  wholesale  and  retail  small-instru- 

24 


^atricft  ^o$tpf^  1$teAp 


ment  department,  and  had  already  conceived 
his  plans  of  world-wide  advertising,  and,  as  an 
earnest  of  his  intentions,  had  started  the 
"Little  Bandmen"  advertisement  running  in  all 
the  great  newspapers  of  the  day.  This  was  the 
beginning  of  the  persistent,  logical  advertising 
which  was  to  carry  the  name  of  Lyon  &  Healy 
into  the  farthermost  hamlets  of  America.  About 
this  time,  it  became  evident  to  his  clear 
judgment  that  certain  of  his  employees  had  in 
them  ability  to  ably  second  his  efforts.  They 
were  the  fine  gold,  so  to  speak,  in  the  mass  of 
clay  with  which  he  was  working  to  perfect  his 
organization,  and  we  find  him  beginning  to 
entrust  a  prominent  part  in  the  business  cam- 
paign to  his  lieutenants.  These  young  men 
he  placed  in  the  positions  for  which  they 
seemed  peculiarly  fitted,  and  having  given 
them  a  firm,  unwavering  example  in  the  great 
underlying  principles  of  business,  he  left  them 
in  matters  of  detail  almost  entirely  to  their  own 
devices.  The  process  of  making  all  the  younger 
men  in  Lyon  &  Healy' s  strong  by  throwing  them 
upon  their  own  resources,  letting  them  make 
mistakes  and  get  out  of  them  as  best  they 
could,  is  illustrated  by  one  typical  incident. 

25 


^atricfe  S^o^epl)  i^ealp 


A  certain  seminary  not  far  from  Chicago 
had  decided  to  put  in  a  number  of  high-grade 
pianos,  and  one  of  the  salesmen  was  sent  to 
endeavor  to  sell  them.  Next  day,  this  young 
man  telegraphed  Mr.  Healy:  "What  shall  I  do 
for  a  starter?" 

Quick  as  a  flash,  Mr.  Healy  telegraphed  back: 
"Start  home." 

But  if  Mr.  Healy  sometimes  used  Spartan 
methods  in  building  up  the  character  of  his 
younger  associates,  no  man  ever  placed  a 
higher  estimate  upon  loyalty.  Loyal  himself 
in  the  highest  degree  to  those  who  had  given 
him  his  start  in  the  business  world,  and  to 
those  constituting  his  business  family,  he  could 
forgive  and  overlook  almost  anything  in  the  man 
who  was  doggedly  faithful  to  Lyon  &  Healy. 
One  day  a  clerk  reported  that  a  certain  red- 
headed stripling,  who  had  grown  up  in  the  store, 
was  impudent  to  him  and  must  be  discharged. 

"Very  well,"  said  Mr.  Healy,  "discharge 
him." 

Presently  the  clerk  came  back  and  said :  '  'I 
have  discharged  him,  and  he  won't  go.  Won't 
you  please  sign  a  written  order  for  his  dis- 
missal?" 

26 


I^atricft  ^o^tpl)  i^ealp 


Mr.  Healy  signed  the  order  with  his  custo- 
mary bold  flourish. 

In  a  few  moments  the  clerk  returned  again, 
in  a  high  state  of  indignation,  and  blurted  out: 
"He  won't  go.  I  gave  him  your  written  order, 
and  he  read  it  and  tore  it  up,  and  then  said. 
Oh,  you  go  to  blazes! '"  "Well,"  replied  Mr. 
Healy,  turning  to  his  correspondence,  "since 
you've  discharged  him,  and  I've  discharged 
him,  and  he  won't  go,  I  don't  see  what  further 
can  be  done." 


27 


CHAPTER  FOUR 

IN  Chicago  they  have  only  two  periods  of 
time, —  before  the  fire,  and  after.  True, 
new-comers  to  that  city  often  date  things 
from  the  Fair,  but  your  genuine  Chicagoan  be- 
gins his  narration  with,  "It  was  about  three 
years  before  the  fire,"  etc.  The  Chicago  fire, 
ranking,  as  it  ever  will,  among  the  world's  great 
catastrophes,  wiped  out  substantial  business 
enterprises  by  the  thousand,  and  crippled  every 
Chicago  business  house  more  than  can  possibly 
be  deduced  from  a  table  of  figures.  For  years 
afterward,  firms  that  had  apparently  recov- 
ered from  the  blow  collapsed  almost  in  a  night. 
The  same  thing  is  true  of  the  business  men 
of  that  period.  The  number  of  deaths  indi- 
rectly caused  by  the  fire  can  never  be  traced. 
To  have  the  accumulations  of  a  generation 
swept  away  in  an  hour  before  one's  eyes  is  an 
experience  which  no  man  can  go  through  with- 
out carrying  the  marks  of  it  to  the  grave.  The 
very  shrewdest  and  most  capable  merchants 
were  carried  off  their  feet,  and  no  blame  could 
be  attached  to  them.  Take  the  case  of  those 
Chicagoans  who  had  placed  their   insurance 

29 


^atricft  2fo^epl)  l^ealp 


in  the  Chicago  fire  insurance  companies 
which  were  so  big  with  promise  in  1870.  The 
day  after  the  fire  they  were  worse  off  than 
penniless,  and  only  years  of  debt  and  strained 
credit  remained  before  them.  Then  those  mer- 
chants who  were  fortunate  enough  to  have  had 
their  insurance  in  foreign  companies  awoke 
October  loth  to  find  their  "bills  receivable "  in 
large  part  only  a  myth.  The  merchant  who 
held  the  same  position  in  the  dry-goods  trade 
that  Mr.  Healy  did  in  the  musical  industry, 
a  few  days  after  the  fire  announced  that  he 
could  see  no  hope.  He  remained  in  business 
because,  in  justice  to  others,  he  could  not  stop, 
but  he  frankly  advised  his  Eastern  connec- 
tions of  the  desperate  plight  of  all  Chicago 
business  men.  In  viewing  Mr.  Healy' s  atti- 
tude at  the  time  of  the  fire,  one  can  but 
marvel.  If  the  Chicago  fire  annihilated 
larger  firms,  houses  of  long-established  credit, 
doing  business  on  their  own  capital,  what  chance 
was  there  for  a  young  firm,  barely  eight  years  old, 
which  had  already  within  the  year  been  wiped 
out  by  fire  ?  That  Mr.  Healy  could  go  calmly 
ahead,  almost  as  though  nothing  had  hap- 
pened, shows  the  extraordinary  strength  of  his 

30 


^atricft  So^tph  i^^alp 


character.  Truly,  he  was  born  to  succeed, 
and  nothing  could  keep  him  from  his  own. 
Fate  might  be  said  to  have  done  her  worst  in 
his  case,  but  he  rose  to  each  occasion  forceful, 
alert,  and  with  an  eye  to  every  chance.  His 
personal  attitude  was  reflected  in  the  men  with 
whom  he  had  surrounded  himself.  For,  after 
they  had  done  what  they  could  on  the  night  of 
the  fire  to  save  books  and  papers,  they  dis- 
persed before  the  flames,  firm  in  the  knowledge 
that  business  would  be  continued  somehow, 
somewhere,  on  the  morrow.  Mr.  Healy's  own 
words  in  regard  to  the  fire  itself,  are  as  follows : 
"At  the  time  of  the  great  fire  of '71,  I  lived  on 
Peoria  Street,  near  Van  Buren.  The  Sunday 
evening  of  the  fire  I  retired  before  eight  o'clock, 
and,  if  my  memory  does  not  deceive  me,  I  was 
not  long  in  bed  before  an  alarm  of  fire  sound- 
ed, then  a  second,  a  third,  and  so  on.  I  dressed 
myself  in  haste  and  went  down  town.  Upon 
reaching  the  river,  I  concluded  that  the  busi- 
ness district  of  Chicago  was  doomed,  and  press- 
ing forward,  I  arrived  at  our  store  at  No.  150 
Clark  Street  about  ten  o'clock.  I  opened  the 
safe,  took  out  all  money,  bills  receivable,  in- 
surance policies,   and   other  valuable  papers, 

31 


^atricft  S^o^epI)  J^ealp 


and  carried  them  home.  I  then  immediately 
started  to  return  to  the  store,  but  I  had  great 
difficulty  in  getting  there  on  account  of  the  ex- 
citement and  crowded  condition  of  the  streets. 
But  I  finally  succeeded  in  forcing  my  way, 
and,  upon  entering  the  store,  I  found  there  a 
number  of  our  employees.  They  had  all  con- 
cluded that  the  business  district  of  Chicago 
was  doomed,  and  that  we  had  no  choice  but 
to  abandon  our  store  and  its  contents.  They 
advised  me  not  to  trust  the  ledger,  cash-book, 
and  journal  to  the  safe.  While  I  doubted  my 
ability  to  get  to  the  West  Side  in  safety  with 
the  books,  I  nevertheless  took  their  advice, 
and  by  the  aid  of  two  of  our  draymen  managed 
to  reach  the  West  Side  by  Eighteenth  Street, 
about  two  or  three  o'clock  in  the  morning." 

Immediately  after  the  fire  Lyon  &  Healy 
occupied  temporary  quarters  in  a  small  store  at 
287  West  Madison  Street,  afterwards  securing 
warerooms  in  a  little  church  building  on 
Wabash  Avenue,  corner  Sixteenth  Street.  Here 
the  better  part  of  a  year  was  spent  awaiting 
the  rebuilding  of  the  business  center.  So 
shrewdly  had  Mr.  Healy  placed  his  insurance 
that  his  house  realized  85  per  cent  of  the  face 

32 


^atricft  SFo^epI)  J^ealp 


of  the  insurance  policies;  but  outside  of  this 
it  may  be  said  that  naught  but  chaos  re- 
mained. Mr.  Healy  was  not  slow  to  under- 
stand that  a  crisis  in  his  house  was  at  hand, 
and  that  much  depended  upon  obtaining  an 
advantageous  lease.  Finally,  after  difficult 
negotiations  he  secured  the  store  building  at 
162  to  164  State  Street,  from  Judge  Otis,  and  in 
November,  1873,  ^^^  again  able  to  transact  bus- 
iness in  a  permanent  office.  To  the  regard, 
admiration,  and  personal  loyalty  with  which  Mr. 
Healy  never  failed  to  inspire  all  his  close  asso- 
ciates, must  be  ascribed  the  readiness  with  which 
his  Eastern  friends  faced  the  rebuilding  of  the 
business.  In  the  case  of  almost  any  one  else 
they  would  have  abandoned  a  field  so  fruit- 
fiil  of  appalling  disaster.  As  it  was,  they 
brought  great  pressure  to  bear  upon  him 
to  make  certain  changes,  but  he  stood  firm. 
'The  house  of  Lyon  &  Healy  must  go  on  just 
as  it  is,"  were  his  words,  uttered  with  a  deter- 
mination that  carried  all  before  it.  The  new 
store  was  located  right  in  the  heart  of  the 
retail  shopping  district.  The  rent  at  that  time 
seemed  enormous,  and  signs  of  an  approach- 
ing panic  were  not  wanting.    But  somehow 

33 


^atricfe  S^D^epf)  i^ealp 


during  those  troublous  days  of  the  early  'yo's, 
Mr.  Healy  managed  not  only  to  keep  afloat, 
but  to  make  some  progress.  In  looking  back, 
it  is  hard  to  realize  the  conditions  of  business 
in  those  days,  and  hard  to  understand  that 
many  things  that  are  now  a  matter  of  course 
were  then  daring  experiments.  Mr.  Healy 
did  things.  Older  men  in  the  trade  shook 
their  heads  and  presaged  failure.  He  sold 
pianos  for  almost  nominal  payments  down, 
gave  long  time  on  the  balance,  and  scarcely  ever 
repossessed  a  piano.  "Men  who  want  to  steal," 
he  said,  "have  no  use  for  pianos."  He  sold 
sheet  music  at  a  heavy  discount  from  list 
prices.  C.  A.  Zoebisch,  the  leading  small-in- 
strument importer  of  the  time,  in  one  of  his 
early  trips  to  New  York,  hunted  him  up  and 
said:  "Healy,  I  see  you  have  gotten  out  a 
picture-book.  I  am  sorry  about  it.  You  will 
surely  ruin  the  business."  And  Mr.  Zoebisch 
was  considered  the  oldest,  shrewdest,  and 
wealthiest  man  in  the  musical  importing  trade. 
The  "picture-book"  to  which  he  referred 
was  an  illustrated  catalog,  by  far  the  most 
elaborate  and  expensive  of  the  kind  issued 
by  a  business  house  up  to  that  time.     Con- 

34 


^atricft  ^^o^eplj  i^ealp 


trast  this  method  of  merchandising  with  the 
secret-cost  and  sales-from-samples-only  style, 
and  one  sees  why  Lyon  &  Healy  went  for- 
ward by  leaps  and  bounds.  Later,  the  first 
catalog  ever  printed  containing  half-tone  en- 
gravings of  goods,  and  portraits  of  prominent 
artists  recommending  them,  upon  each  page, 
was  issued  by  Lyon  &  Healy.  Newspaper 
advertising  was  handled  by  Mr.  Healy  in  the 
same  broad  manner.  His  ideas  were  many 
years  ahead  of  the  times.  From  the  first  he 
had  the  true  advertising  instinct.  "A  good 
advertisement  of  a  good  thing,  in  a  good  paper, 
is  a  good  investment,"  was  one  of  his  maxims. 
He  would  satisfy  himself  upon  these  three  car- 
dinal points,  and  take  no  concern  if  the  im- 
mediate returns  were  apparently  far  less 
than  the  cost.  He  was  always  building  for  the 
future.  So  undivided  was  his  attention  to  his 
business  affairs,  that  almost  everything  out- 
side of  the  Lyon  &  Healy  sphere  of  activity 
was  rejected  without  a  moment's  hesitation. 
Opportunities  for  speculation,  for  investment, 
for  other  business,  were  waved  aside  with  scarce 
a  moment's  consideration.  He  would  smile 
pleasantly    at    the    enthusiastic    promotor    or 

35 


^atricft  3^o^ept|  1$ta\p 


broker,  and  say,  "  Oh,  take  that  to  one  of  those 
smart  fellows."  With  Mr.  Healy,  it  was  Lyon 
&  Healy  first,  last,  and  all  the  time.  Naturally, 
his  friends  were  those  with  whom  he  touched 
elbows  in  his  daily  affairs,  but  these  friend- 
ships were  stanch  and  lifelong. 

So  when  the  smoke  of  the  fire  had  fairly 
cleared  away,  we  find  Mr.  Healy  splendidly 
alive,  and  with  the  foundations  ready  upon 
which  he  was  to  build  the  greatest  business  of 
the  kind  the  world  had  seen. 


36 


CHAPTER  FIVE 

IN  July,  1877,  ^^-  Healy  was  called  upon  to 
suffer  the  loss  of  his  devoted  wife.  After  a 
very  brief  illness,  Mrs.  Healy  passed  away, 
leaving  James,  George,  Raymond,  and  Paul, 
four  little  children  to  accentuate  her  absence. 
The  shock  bore  heavily  upon  him,  and  for  a 
time  he  was  completely  prostrated.  Then  he 
resumed  his  business  cares  with  an  intensity  that 
spoke  all  too  plainly  of  a  desolate  fireside. 

A  short  time  prior  to  the  Chicago  fire,  the 
firm  of  Lyon  8i  Healy  had  placed  on  sale  the 
first  upright  pianos  ever  exhibited  in  Chicago. 
Everything  up  to  that  time  had  been  either 
square  or  grand  pianos.  The  innovation  was 
not  regarded  with  favor  by  the  trade.  One  of 
Mr.  Healy's  competitors  called  to  inspect  the 
new  claimants  for  public  favor.  He  was  quite 
an  eloquent  speaker  upon  certain  topics,  and 
after  viewing  the  upright  pianos,  he  delivered 
his  opinion  upon  them,  setting  forth  at  length 
the  various  reasons  why  they  could  never  suc- 
ceed. His  reasons  were  as  plentiful  as  cures  for 
a  cold.  Mr.  Healy  heard  him  to  the  end,  and 
then  repHed  in  his  most  positive  manner,  "Mr. 

37 


^atricft  S^o^epf)  i^calp 


-,  inside  of  one  year  you  will  be  proclaim- 


ing the  merits  of  the  upright  piano  in  as  strong 
terms  as  we  are  going  to  do  from  now  on  " ;  and 
when  he  had  bowed  the  gentleman  out,  Mr. 
Healy  turned  to  his  associates  and  said:  "  We  '11 
have  a  carload  of  upright  pianos  shipped  to  us 
at  once."  Lyon  &  Healy  made  a  great  gain  in 
the  piano  department  of  their  business  by  this 
accurate  forecasting  of  public  taste.  The  square 
piano  was  speedily  relegated  to  second  place, 
and  the  new  kind  of  piano  sold  by  Lyon  & 
Healy  became  town  talk. 

Mr.  Healy  had  always  been  a  devout  church 
goer,  and,  in  company  with  several  other  gentle- 
men, was  now  persuaded  to  serve  on  a  com- 
mittee to  conduct  a  series  of  church  entertain- 
ments given  for  the  purpose  of  raising  funds 
for  the  purpose  of  building  a  new  church  struc- 
ture. He  soon  saw  the  bad  features  of  raising 
church  funds  by  such  means.  So  to  his  pastor 
he  made  the  proposition  that  he  would  be  one 
of  a  number  to  guarantee  the  necessary  funds, 
provided  all  entertainments  of  a  secular  nature 
be  abandoned.  To  this  the  clergyman  gladly 
agreed.  Then  Mr.  Healy,  by  his  forceful  point- 
ing out  of  the  waste  of  valuable  time  and  effort 

38 


^atricft  ^o^cp^  i^ealp 


incident  to  entertainments  and  their  lack  of 
harmony  with  the  character  of  a  house  of  wor- 
ship, induced  other  members  of  the  congrega- 
tion to  join  with  him  in  Hberal  voluntary 
contributions. 

Mr.  Healy  had  a  way  of  going  on  with  por- 
tions of  his  business  that  were  not  very  pros- 
perous which  bespoke  a  patience  of  the  larger 
sort  as  well  as  a  grim  determination.  **When 
I  put  my  foot  forward  I  never  like  to  take  it 
back,"  he  said  time  and  again  when  urged  to 
discontinue  some  branch  of  the  house's  affairs 
that  seemed  incapable  of  ever  making  an  ade- 
quate return. 

Another  and  a  greater  indication  of  his  pa- 
tience was  his  early  determination  to  ''grow 
his  own  captains,''  as  he  sometimes  tersely 
put  it.  It  was  his  pride  to  point  out  that  every 
man  holding  a  position  of  high  responsibility 
had  entered  the  employ  of  Lyon  &  Healy  at 
about  the  age  of  sixteen;  and  one  of  Mr.  Healy's 
strongest  points  was  his  ability  to  bring  out 
what  was  best  in  his  subordinates.  Men 
developed  unsuspected  powers  when  working 
under  Mr.  Healy's  eye.  As  the  years  went  by 
and  these  men  grew  in  strength  of  purpose  and 

39 


^attith  3Foi6fept)  i^ealp 


force  of  character,  they  came  to  feel  for  theu: 
chief  a  love  and  veneration  that  knew  no  bounds. 
He  was  fond  of  quoting  Napoleon's  saying  to 
the  effect  that  **  every  French  soldier  carried  in 
his  knapsack  a  marshal's  baton";  and  in  his 
own  business  organization  he  proved  that  it 
rested  with  the  individual  whether  or  not  that 
individual  might  some  day  have  a  voice  in  the 
direction  of  the  affairs  of  the  firm. 

One  day  as  Mr.  Healy  was  signing  the  firm 
name,  a  small  bit  of  the  paper  caught  upon 
his  broad  gold  pen,  and,  presto!  the  famous 
signature  known  of  business  men  and  bankers 
the  world  over  was  born.  He  at  once  saw 
the  value  of  the  trade-mark,  and  finding  that 
he  could  produce  it  with  an  ordinary  pen  by 
means  of  a  quick  and  peculiar  dip  of  the  wrist 
he  never  varied  from  it  thereafter. 


From  the  above  fac-simile  of  his  writing,  it 
will  be  seen  that  this  original  signature  is  re- 
markable from   several   standpoints.      In  the 

40 


^attith  S^o^epft  i^ealp 


first  place,  it  is  one  of  the  most  difficult  signa- 
tures to  counterfeit  or  forge.  It  looks  simple, 
but  the  thousands  of  people  who  have  striven  to 
make  a  copy  of  it,  just  for  their  own  amusement, 
have  found  it  wellnigh  impossible  to  duplicate. 
In  the  next  place,  it  is  extremely  striking  and 
yet  legible.  Any  one  familiar  with  signa- 
tures current  in  financial  circles  knows  that 
many  of  the  most  important  ones  are  so  in- 
volved and  complicated  as  to  be  entirely  un- 
readable. In  fact,  even  some  of  the  signatures 
upon  the  United  States  paper  currency  might 
almost  as  well  be  Chinese,  as  far  as  legibility 
is  concerned.  Mr.  Healy  always  modestly 
ascribed  his  signature  to  two  things  —  first,  the 
lucky  accident  of  the  small  wad  of  paper ;  and 
second,  the  fact  that,  as  a  small  boy,  one  of 
his  duties  in  the  first  school  he  attended  was 
to  sharpen  and  care  for  the  quill  pens.  So 
naturally  much  of  the  dashing  quill-pen  style 
of  chirography  clung  to  him  after  he  took  up 
with  the  modern  pen.  Mr.  Healy's  signature 
has  been  extensively  pirated  both  in  and  out 
of  the  music  business,  and  if  imitation  is  the 
sincerest  flattery,  he  could  never  complain  that 
other  firms  whose  names  happened  to  begin 

41 


^atricft  '^o^tp^  i^ealp 


with  the  letter  "  L"  did  not  appreciate  his  in- 
vention. His  handwriting  at  this  time  was 
very  pecuhar,  but  perfectly  legible,  as  will  be 
evident  from  the  annexed  example. 


42 


CHAPTER  SIX 

IN  September,  1882,  Mr.  Healy  took  his  sec- 
ond wife,  Miss  Frances  Hannan.  She  was 
a  highly  educated  woman,  the  possessor 
of  marked  literary  ability,  and  her  prominence 
in  church  matters,  where  her  sterling  qualities 
were  fully  recognized,  led  to  Mr.  Healy's  ac- 
quaintance with  her.  A  woman  of  command- 
ing presence,  her  bearing  was  full  of  grace  and 
dignity.  It  was  a  love-match  in  the  best  sense  of 
the  word,  and  during  the  happy  years  that  fol- 
lowed, Mr.  Healy  and  his  brilliant  wife  were 
inseparable.  The  marriage  ceremony  was  fol- 
lowed by  a  trip  abroad,  which  was  the  first  long 
vacation  from  business  affairs  that  Mr.  Healy 
had  allowed  himself.  On  his  return  the  em- 
ployees of  the  house  greeted  him  en  masse,  and 
the  Lyon  &  Healy  Military  Band,  which  had 
now  grown  to  be  one  of  the  leading  musical 
organizations  of  Chicago,  insisted  upon  sere- 
nading him,  and  would  not  be  denied.  Mr. 
Healy,  always  the  most  modest  and  retiring  of 
men,  said  that  while  he  thanked  the  members 
of  the  band  from  the  bottom  of  his  heart,  he 
hoped  the  neighbors   would  understand   that 

43 


^atricfe  ^c$tp^  i^ealp 


he  had  no  part  in  planning  a  public  reception. 
This  trip  of  Mr.  Healy's  was  the  first  of  the 
long  series  in  which  he  took  such  delight,  and 
in  which  he  cultivated  the  acquaintance  of  mu- 
sic dealers,  large  and  small,  until  his  personal 
friends  became  legion,  and  his  friendly  calls 
one  of  the  institutions  of  the  music  trade. 

Daily,  from  this  period  on,  plans  of  develop- 
ment were  brought  to  him  by  his  assistants. 
His  method  of  declining  those  which  seemed 
unsound  to  him,  without  discouraging  the  spon- 
sors, is  interesting.  He  would  listen  carefully 
to  the  proposition,  and  if  it  had  to  do  with  de- 
tail, he  would  finally  dispose  of  it  by  saying, 
*'Yes,  it  might  do  —  but  —  it  would  take  more 
clerks."  If  it  were  a  proposition  involving  a 
radical  move,  whether  sound  or  unsound,  he 
would  usually  make  a  note  of  it  on  a  slip  torn 
from  the  edge  of  a  newspaper,  and  remark, 
I  '11  see  what  the  others  think." 

Mr.  Healy  was  not  given  to  framing  sen- 
tences that  might  be  quoted,  in  fact,  he  avoided 
everything  of  the  kind  as  far  as  possible;  yet 
many  of  his  sayings,  in  spite  of  their  modest 
delivery,  were  caught  up  and  treasured  by  those 
who  enjoyed  his  confidence.     For  instance,  upon 

44 


^atricft  ^o^tpt^  i^ealp 


the  subject  of  banking,  he  began:  "  Never 
defer  borrowing  from  a  bank  until  you  actually 
need  money."  Upon  the  subject  of  giving  notes, 
when  the  cash  balance  in  the  bank  is  so  large 
as  to  make  the  practice  not  only  unnecessary, 
but  the  care  of  the  cash  in  itself  somewhat 
of  a  burden,  he  said:  "Bankers  are  crea- 
tures of  habit.  The  paper  that  was  all  right 
yesterday  is  all  right  to-day.  Therefore,  have 
no  cessation  in  the  flow,  no  break  in  the  se- 
quence. If  you  do,  when  you  are  forced  to 
resume  putting  out  paper,  you  will  find  that 
the  whole  army  of  bankers,  who  formerly  took 
your  paper  as  a  matter  of  course,  now  set 
themselves  up  into  so  many  living  interrogation 
points  who  want  to  know  '  Why  ? '  and  *  Where- 
fore?' and  all  about  it." 

In  October,  1889,  to  Mr.  Healy's  great  re- 
gret, the  partnership  of  a  quarter  of  a  century 
was  broken  by  the  withdrawal  of  Mr.  Lyon, 
who,  at  the  time,  was  approaching  seventy 
years  of  age,  and  for  a  long  time  past  had 
been  out  of  sympathy  with  the  expansion  of 
business  taking  place  each  year  under  Mr. 
Healy's  aggressive  management.  When,  there- 
fore, Mr.  Lyon  refused  to  permit  the  house  to 

4S 


^atricft  ^c^tpJi  ]^ealp 


go  on  with  necessary  steps  in  its  growth,  and 
also  declined  all  offers  looking  toward  his  retire- 
ment from  active  participation  in  the  affairs 
of  the  house,  although  requested  to  occupy 
one  of  the  chief  offices  for  hfe,  a  sad  but  una- 
voidable break  occurred.  Mr.  Healy  arranged 
that  Mr.  Lyon  should  be  paid  a  large  sum  for 
the  use  of  his  name,  in  addition  to  the  price 
of  his  actual  holdings,  so  that  the  firm  might 
go  on  with  title  unchanged. 

About  this  time  the  factories  established  in 
a  small  way  for  the  production  of  musical 
instruments  had  outgrown  their  dingy  quarters, 
and  Mr.  Healy  conceived  the  plan  of  building 
a  huge  factory  opposite  one  of  the  Chicago 
parks.  Such  property  hitherto  had  been  used 
exclusively  for  apartment  houses,  and  was,  of 
course,  much  more  expensive  than  land  on  some 
side  street ;  but  from  the  first,  Mr.  Healy  wished 
the  keynote  of  the  Lyon  &  Healy  factories  to 
be  "Quality."  It  is  doubtful  if  another  fac- 
tory anywhere  has  the  charming  outlook  en- 
joyed by  the  Lyon  &  Healy  building,  and  surely 
few  workmen  look  out  from  their  daily  tasks 
upon  great  beds  of  flowers  and  upon  minia- 
ture lakes  dotted  with  swans.     The  residents 

46 


^attich  3^0iBfepl^  I^ealp 


of  the  neighborhood  were  naturally  in  arms 
at  this  innovation,  but  the  first  few  months 
showed  them  that  at  least  one  factory  could 
be  a  good  neighbor.  Along  its  walls  radiant 
geraniums  hail  the  passer-by,  and  the  windows 
are  assaulted  by  the  venturesome  ivy,  which 
seeks  every  year  to  enter  that  it  may  learn 
whence  come  the  sweet  sounds. 

Mr.  Healy  made  a  careful  study  from  year 
to  year  of  the  various  plans  tried  in  this  and 
foreign  countries  to  better  the  condition  of  the 
workman.  His  practical  mind  saw  at  once 
the  flaw  in  all  the  co-operative  and  patriarchal 
insurance  and  benefit  schemes.  "  Until  I  can 
find  something  better,  I  know  of  no  other  way 
than  to  pay  a  workman  in  full  every  week, 
and  let  him  attend  to  his  own  insurance,"  was 
his  verdict.  How  sound  was  his  judgment  is 
shown  that  in  all  the  thousands  of  strikes  and 
labor  troubles  in  Chicago  until  the  year  1904, 
the  factory  of  Lyon  &  Healy  was  never  in- 
volved. His  platform  was  as  follows:  "Pay 
cash  to  the  workman  for  everything  he 
does.  Do  not  attempt  to  spend  money  that 
is  not  yours  to  spend  for  the  bettering  of  his 
condition.     Pay  him  the  highest  market  price 

47 


^atritft  5o^epI)  i^ealp 


and  let  him  work  out  his  own  salvation.  The 
moment  you  begin  to  handle  trust  funds  or  to 
build  up  benefits,  the  workman  becomes  sus- 
picious. Be  your  motives  never  so  pure,  they 
will  be  questioned.  But  as  much  cash  as  he 
can  earn  anywhere  else,  paid  cheerfully  and 
regularly,  is  something  the  workman  can 
understand." 

Mr.  Healy  had  long  wished  to  do  some  signal 
thing  in  the  world  of  music.  In  a  general 
way,  and  in  a  thousand  small  ways,  he  had 
advanced  the  musical  industry  greatly;  but  he 
desired  to  put  his  personal  impress  upon  the 
world  of  music,  so  that  it  would  leave  a  well- 
nigh  indelible  mark.  So  a  portion  of  the  beau- 
tiful new  factory  was  set  aside  in  which  to 
build  the  finest  harp  the  world  had  ever  seen. 
Skilled  draftsmen  were  secured,  and  the  under- 
taking was  gone  into  with  the  thoroughness 
that  insures  ultimate  success.  The  harp  at 
that  time  had  not  been  materially  improved 
since  the  invention  of  Sebastian  Erard,  in  1812, 
a  period  of  some  seventy  years.  Indeed,  it 
was  a  part  of  the  traditions  of  the  musical 
profession  that  the  harp,  like  the  violin,  had 
reached   perfection.     But    from    the    constant 

48 


^atricfe  So$tp^  l^ealp 


stream  of  out-of-repair  harps  that  had  been 
sent  to  him  for  years  past,  Mr.  Healy  knew 
better.  "Let  us  build  a  harp,"  he  said,  "that 
will  rank  beside  the  American  watch.  Instead 
of  each  harp  being  a  source  of  constant  wor- 
riment  to  its  player  from  its  liability  to  get  out 
of  order,  let  us  make  a  harp  that  will  go  around 
the  world  without  loosening  a  screw." 

It  took  years  to  evolve  such  an  instrument, 
and  an  expenditure  of  money  entirely  out  of 
proportion  to  the  cash  returns  in  sight.  But 
the  labor  was  one  of  love.  The  new  Lyon  & 
Healy  harp  in  its  final  form  was  born  about  1886. 
Immediately,  it  started  upon  a  tour  of  conquest 
unique  in  its  way.  One  of  the  new  Lyon  & 
Healy  harps  was  introduced  into  the  Chicago 
Orchestra.  At  the  first  concert  in  which  it 
was  used  every  member  of  that  grand  organ- 
ization was  aware  that  the  harp  tone  had  sud- 
denly assumed  a  depth  and  richness  not  here- 
tofore heard.  The  curiosity  and  adulation  of 
the  public  is  well  enough  in  its  way,  but  far 
more  precious  is  the  hushed  attention  of  a  body 
of  trained  critics.  The  simple  inquiry  from 
numerous  brother  players,  "Where  did  you  get 
your  new  harp?"  meant  more  to  the  harpist 

49 


^atricft  ^tx0tpf^  l^ealp 


than  a  column  of  newspaper  praise.  So,  on 
the  recommendation  of  the  harpist  in  the  Chi- 
cago Orchestra,  and  later  of  the  harpist  in 
the  Boston  Orchestra,  a  Lyon  &  Healy  harp 
was  sent  to  Leipsic.  There  it  was  played 
in  the  Gewandhaus  Orchestra.  Shortly  after 
came  word  that  Siegfried  Wagner  had  become 
enraptured  of  its  tone-quality.  In  a  few  years, 
eight  Lyon  8z  Healy  harps  were  bought  by 
soloists  in  Berlin  alone.  In  every  German  city 
the  possession  of  a  Lyon  &  Healy  harp  became 
the  dream  of  the  local  harpist.  "Can  a  harp 
come  out  of  Chicago?  "  asked  the  London  crit- 
ics. Aptommas  played  his  new  Lyon  &  Healy 
harp,  and  the  question  was  answered.  Then 
followed  triumphs  in  England,  France,  Italy, 
South  America,  and  Russia,  until  the  Lyon  & 
Healy  harp  became  the  recognized  standard 
of  the  world. 

The  Washburn  guitars,  mandolins,  and  ban- 
jos, in  their  less  serious  field,  were  also  pushed 
to  a  degree  of  excellence  hitherto  unknown. 
An  interesting  side-light  upon  their  quality  is 
given  by  a  letter  from  Shanghai,  China,  in 
which  the  local  music  dealer  says,  "At  last  we 
have   a  mandolin,  'The  Washburn,'  that  will 

50 


^atricft  S^o^epl)  i^calp 


not  fall  apart  from  the  excessive  dampness  of 
this  climate." 

The  annual  output  of  the  Lyon  &  Healy 
factories  by  1890  had  reached  100,000  musical 
instruments,  or,  as  Mr.  Healy  himself  graph- 
ically put  it,  "a  musical  instrument  every  other 
working  minute.'* 


51 


CHAPTER  SEVEN 

THE  decade  from  1890  to  1900  was  a  peri- 
od of  great  activity  and  it  was  marked  by 
the  fruition  of  many  of  Mr.  Healy's  life- 
long dreams.  In  1892  the  nearest  competi- 
tors of  Lyon  &  Healy  were  left  far  behind  in 
the  volume  of  business  done,  and  his  house 
received  universal  recognition  as  the  largest 
music  house  in  the  world.  In  1893  came  the 
World's  Fair  in  Chicago,  in  which  Lyon  & 
Healy  gave  a  display  that  surpassed  anything 
of  the  kind  theretofore,  for  a  beautiful  two- 
story  building  was  erected,  and  concerts  were 
given  daily  for  six  months.  The  public  was 
invited,  and  a  large  register  was  filled  with 
the  names  of  distinguished  visitors  from  all 
over  the  world. 

When  the  whole  country,  in  1893,  plunged 
in  a  moment  from  the  topmost  wave  of  pros- 
perity to  the  lowest  ebb  of  panic,  the  vast 
majority  of  business  men  were  caught  unpre- 
pared. Not  so  Mr.  Healy.  For  a  year  he  had 
been  studying  the  financial  skies,  and  all  the 
blaze  and  glory  of  the  World's  Fair  had  not 
bUnded  him.     Six   months   before  the   crash 

53 


^atricfe  S^o^epft  i^ealp 


came  he  had  begun  to  take  in  sail,  and  when 
the  critical  moment  arrived  the  affairs  of  the 
house  were  in  such  shape  as  to  render  it  an 
object  of  admiration  to  any  one  at  all  convers- 
ant with  the  facts.  His  conduct  of  affairs  was 
characterized  by  a  great  financier  as  marked 
by  the  most  extreme  good  judgment.  Never- 
theless, the  long  duration  of  the  panic,  besides 
making  sad  inroads  in  the  profits,  added  greatly 
to  Mr.  Healy's  personal  cares  and  responsi- 
bilities ;  for  he  extended  aid  to  all  the  old  custom- 
ers of  the  house,  and,  in  spite  of  the  endless 
demands,  remained  a  bulwark  in  the  trade. 

It  was  early  in  this  decade  that  Mr.  Healy, 
feeling  the  need  of  a  place  for  recuperation, 
built  a  beautiful  summer  home  at  Lake  Geneva, 
Wisconsin.  He  called  it  ^'  Shamrock  Cottage," 
and  here  his  family  spent  the  summers;  here 
the  little  ones  were  taught  to  swim  and  to 
row  and  to  sail  and  to  enjoy  outdoor  life.  Mr. 
Healy  himself  was  a  powerful  swimmer,  as 
might  be  expected  of  a  man  with  his  great  deep 
chest,  and  Mrs.  Healy  was  not  a  whit  behind 
in  love  for  the  water.  The  children  seemed 
to  have  no  sense  of  fear,  and  to  be  as  much 
at  home  in  or  on  the  lake  as  on  the  shore. 

54 


^atticft  2ro^epft  i^ealp 


Another  of  his  ambitions  to  be  realized 
about  this  time  was  the  covering  of  prac- 
tically the  entire  civilized  globe  with  emis- 
saries from  Lyon  &  Healy.  All  the  princi- 
pal cities  of  Europe  for  many  years  had  been 
visited  regularly  by  representatives  of  the  house, 
and  salesmen  were  continually  traveling  the 
length  and  breadth  of  the  United  States  and 
Canada,  but  now  able  men  were  dispatched 
to  Australia,  China,  and  Japan,  and  to  the 
countries  of  South  America.  In  every  city  of 
importance  a  representative  for  the  goods  made 
by  the  Lyon  &  Healy  factories  was  secured. 
It  is  worthy  of  note  that  even  in  places 
farthest  away,  the  fame  of  Lyon  &  Healy  had 
spread  to  such  an  extent  that  business  was 
secured  with  very  little  difficulty. 

A  point  at  which  his  business  touched 
very  close  to  Art  was  in  the  department  of 
Fine  Violins.  Mr.  Healy  was  never  carried 
away  by  unreasoning  enthusiasm,  but  he  pos- 
sessed a  steady  confidence  in  the  American  pub- 
lic which  inspired  him  to  do  things  deliberately 
that  other  men  could  do  only  under  stimulus, 
so  when  the  connoisseur  of  old  violins  em- 
ployed by  Lyon  &  Healy  succeeded  in  finding 

55 


^atricfe  S^D^epf)  i^calp 


a  genuine  specimen  of  Stradivarius,  Guarnerius, 
Amati,  Bergonzi,  Lupot,  or  some  other  great 
master,  and  was  staggered  by  the  price  demand- 
ed, he  would  refer  the  matter  to  Mr.  Healy.  Mr. 
Healy  would  reply,  "  Buy  it."  Thus  was  build- 
ed  up  the  greatest  collection  of  fine  violins  in 
the  world,  with,  perhaps,  one  exception.  Finally, 
an  opportunity  occurred  to  buy  the  Hawley 
collection  of  twelve  masterpieces,  valued  at 
$50,000.  Mr.  Healy,  as  usual,  said,  "Buy  it  "; 
and  Lyon  &  Healy's  forthwith,  as  the  home  of 
the  King  Joseph  Guarnerius  and  other  almost 
priceless  instruments,  became  a  world-shrine  for 
lovers  of  the  violin. 

About  this  time,  also,  was  undertaken  the 
building  of  pipe  organs.  This  appealed  to 
Mr.  Healy  on  sentimental  grounds,  for  he 
regarded  the  field  as  an  uninviting  one  for 
profit.  Like  all  men  who  are  religious  in  the 
broadest  sense,  he  found  sweetness  and  light  in 
everything  connected  with  worship.  A  Roman 
Catholic  and  strong  in  his  own  religious  faith, 
he  was  tolerant  of  every  man's  belief,  and  never 
forced  his  creed  upon  any  one.  If  a  man 
were  only  sincere,  that  was  enough  for  him, 
but  insincerity  in  any  form  he  abominated.    In 

56 


^atricft  S^o^epl)  l^ealp 


dealings  with  churches  he  found  much  to  interest 
him,  and  not  a  little  to  amuse.  To  clergymen 
who  wished  to  buy  pipe  organs  pretty  nearly  all 
on  faith,  he  used  to  say,  "We  sell  organs  on 
time,  but  not  on  eternity."  One  experience  that 
he  had  in  the  early  days  of  Lyon  &  Healy's 
church-organ  building  never  failed  to  make  his 
eyes  twinkle  w^hen  he  recalled  it,  and  for  years 
he  could  never  tell  of  it  without  a  fit  of  merri- 
ment. At  the  invitation  of  a  friend,  he  visited  a 
church,  not  of  an  orthodox  creed,  with  a  view 
to  installing  a  pipe  organ;  it  happened  to  be 
on  a  Wednesday  evening  and  an  "  experience  " 
meeting  was  in  progress.  The  friend,  who 
was  a  clear-cut  business  man,  and  not  a  whit 
behind  Mr.  Healy  in  religious  toleration,  waited 
for  a  moment  that  Mr.  Healy  might  hear  what 
the  old-timers  were  saying.  An  old  gentleman 
arose,  very  feeble  and  very  lean.  He  looked 
as  though  he  had  n't  had  a  good  meal  in  a 
half  a  century.  ''And  now,"  said  the  leader 
of  the  meeting,  "Brother  Borum  will  tell  us 
what  he  has  to  be  thankful  for."  Brother 
Borum  steadied  himself  and  quaked  out, 
"I  have  many  things  for  which  I  praise  God, 
but  the  thing  I  am  most  thankful  for  is  that 

57 


^atticft  S^o^epl)  i^ealp 


I  was  not  born  a  Roman  Catholic."  Mr. 
Healy  says  his  friend  made  a  bee-line  for  the 
door,  dragging  him  after  him,  and  never  stopped 
until  they  reached  the  open  air.  Mr.  Healy,  to 
further  the  joke,  waved  all  explanations  aside, 
and  ever  afterward,  when  he  met  his  friend, 
used  to  ask  him  how  Brother  Borum  was  flour- 
ishing. 

To  Mr.  Healy  and  his  second  wife  were  born 
eight  children,  all  but  one  of  whom  survived  the 
period  of  infancy.  They  were  Mark,  Mary, 
Vincent,  Frances,  Anita,  Columbus,  and  Au- 
gustine, the  third  child,  John,  dying  when  less 
than  a  year  of  age.  Mrs.  Healy  took  the  keen- 
est delight  in  her  family,  and  Mr.  Healy  was 
never  happier  than  when  he  had  one  of  the  little 
ones  by  the  hand.  A  caller  at  the  Healy  home 
one  evening,  after  exhibiting  signs  of  extreme 
restlessness,  said  to  Mr.  Healy, "  Does  n't  the 
noise  disturb  you  ?  "  Mr.  Healy  replied  in  per- 
fect good  faith,  "  What  noise?  " 

When  Mr.  Healy  was  told,  in  1898,  that  Mrs. 
Healy  had  but  a  few  months  to  live,  he  was 
literally  stunned  by  the  impending  blow.  To 
see  his  idolized  wife  slipping  away,  and  to  be 
unable  to  do  aught  to  save  her,  engulfed  him 

58 


in  an  abyss  of  misery  too  deep  for  words.  The 
services  of  the  most  eminent  surgeons  were  en- 
gaged, and  day  and  night  the  devoted  husband 
kept  a  tireless  vigil.  But  there  was  no  hope; 
Mrs.  Healy  died  November  6,  1899.  The 
beautiful  garden  at  Geneva  that  she  loved  was 
thenceforth  to  be  regarded  by  him  only  with 
eyes  brimming  over  with  tears. 

When  he  resumed  his  place  in  business,  his 
kindness  to  those  around  him,  always  great, 
was  redoubled.  It  became  his  delight  to  seek 
out  the  unfortunate,  to  mingle  with  those  who 
had  but  little  joy.  This  characteristic  was 
once  commented  upon  to  him;  he  was  asked 
if  he  knew  that  the  gentleman  he  had  taken  to 
his  club  had  failed  three  times  in  business,  and 
had  a  far  from  enviable  reputation.  His  re- 
ply was:  "If  you  had  failed  three  times  in 
business  and  had  a  far  from  enviable  reputa- 
tion, perhaps  you  would  be  glad  of  an  invitation 
to  dinner,  too." 


59 


CHAPTER  EIGHT 

FROM  the  year  1900,  Mr.  Healy  was  the 
beloved  Nestor  of  the  music  trade.  Al- 
though still  a  comparatively  young  man 
in  years,  his  active  experience  in  his  chosen  busi- 
ness, reaching  close  to  half  a  century,  made 
of  him  an  oracle  whose  utterances  were 
listened  to  with  the  keenest  interest.  Naturally 
possessed  of  a  prodigious  memory,  the  passage 
of  time  seemed  but  to  increase  his  powers  in 
this  respect.  Every  incident  in  his  long  ca- 
reer must  have  been  indelibly  registered  in  some 
powerful  brain-cell,  for  at  will  he  could  sup- 
ply facts  and  figures  long  forgotten  by  others. 
But,  unlike  the  majority  of  elderly  men,  he 
abhorred  exaggeration.  Certain  tables  of 
figures  he  always  carried  with  him  in  a  fa- 
mous black  note-book,  but  he  used  them  only 
for  corroboration.  He  understood  the  value 
of  a  moderate  statement,  for  one  of  his  max- 
ims was:  "  Be  conservative  in  your  speech,  and 
eventually  your  opinion  will  receive  credence 
where  the  claims  of  a  boastful  man  will  be 
passed  by.'' 

His   judgment,   always   excellent,   and   now 
61 


^atricfe  S^OiSfepl)  i^ealp 


ripened  by  a  business  career  such  as  falls  to 
but  a  few  men,  was  regarded  as  nearly  infalli- 
ble. The  splendid  balance  with  which  he 
viewed  things  was  recognized  not  only  through- 
out the  music  trade,  but  in  business  circles 
generally.  One  unique  testimonial  to  his  re- 
markable character  took  place  in  the  year 
1900,  when  two  business  men,  partners,  having 
fallen  out,  called  upon  him  with  the  request 
that  he  arbitrate  their  differences.  These  two 
men,  in  the  course  of  their  business  partner- 
ship of  twenty-five  years,  had  accumulated 
a  business  and  real  estate  to  the  extent 
of  very  nearly  one  million  dollars.  Then 
the  sons  of  one  partner  entering  the  con- 
cern, discord  grew  apace,  until  the  situation 
became  unbearable.  Lawyers  were  called  in 
and  steps  were  taken  to  wind  up  the  affairs,  to 
the  great  loss  of  all  concerned.  At  this  junc- 
ture one  partner  said  he  would  be  willing  to 
abide  by  the  decision  of  P.  J.  Healy,  and  to  this 
the  other  partner  instantly  agreed.  And  they 
came,  these  gray-headed  men  of  wealth,  almost 
like  school-boys,  to  this  modern  Solomon.  He 
heard  their  story,  and  replied:  "I  will  give  you 
a  written  opinion  of  what  you  should  do,  if  you 

62 


I^atncft  ^Fo^ept)  i^ealp 


insist,  but  only  on  one  condition,  and  that  is 
that  you  both  bind  yourselves  to  agree  to  fol- 
low out  my  advice,  and  that  my  opinion  shall 
be  final."  To  this  they  demurred.  Then  Mr. 
Healy  continued:  ''Very  good,  I  am  glad  to 
be  rid  of  the  responsibility,  for  I  should  have 
pleased  neither  of  you,  and  very  likely  should 
have  lost  two  friends."  But  the  next  day  they 
came  again  and  agreed  to  his  condition.  Then 
he  wrote  out  what  each  one  should  do,  asking 
of  each  marked  concessions.  Before  the  two 
men  left  Mr.  Healy' s  presence  they  shook 
hands,  and  one  of  them  said:  "I  feel  twenty- 
five  years  younger  than  when  I  entered  your 
office." 

To  revert  for  a  moment  to  Mr.  Healy' s  ex- 
traordinary memory,  perhaps  a  good  example 
of  it  is  the  following  list  of  firms  in  the  music 
business  in  Chicago  that  had  either  gone  out  of 
business  or  changed  the  title  of  their  firm  since 
the  establishment  of  Lyon  &  Healy.  This  list 
was  given  off-hand  in  answer  to  a  simple  in- 
quiry, without  consulting  any  book  of  reference: 

H.  M.  Higgins  J.  W.  Truby 

Ziegfeld,  Gerard  &  Co.       W.  M.  Madden 
De  Motte  Bros.  P.  Osborne  &  Co. 

63 


^attitfe  3^a^epl)  i^ealp 


Meinhold  &  Co. 
John  Preston 
Strauss  Music  Co. 
Chandler  &  Curtiss 
C.  H.  Fest  &  Co. 
McDonald  &  Newton  Co 
J.  A.  Norris  &  Co. 
G.  D.  Draper  &  Co. 
Clausenius  &  Co. 
R.  Burdett  &  Co. 
Story  &  Camp 
Wilson  &  Crane 
Howe  &  Grant 
C.  A.  Ceroid 
E.  G.  Newell  &  Co. 
R.  Shoninger  &  Co. 
Geo.  Woods  &  Co. 
Smith  &  Nixon 
Baker,  Graves  &  Co. 
J.  Howard  Foote 
Gage  &  Hunt 
T.  J.  Ehnore  &  Co. 
G.  C.  Knopf  el  &  Co. 
Thos.  J.  Finney 
Paterson  &  Wayman 
R.  W.  Cross  &  Co. 
N.  Goold 
N.  Goold  &  Son 
Engel,  Goold  &  Schaff 
C.  A.  Smith  &  Co. 
Geo.  A.  Prince  &  Co. 


Klein  &  Conrad 
J.  G.  Earhuff 
T.  W.  Martin 
Baker  &  Havens 
Rice  Hinze  Piano  Co. 
.  Moore  Organ  Co. 
Sterling  Organ  Co. 
F.  C.  Lighte  &  Co. 
Hallet  &  Davis  Co. 
J.  Estey  &  Co. 
Stone  Bros. 
Strong  &  Leimert 
Russell  &  Lane  Co. 
Goldsmith  &  Co. 
Lewis,  Newell  &  Gibbs 
N.  A.  Cross  &  Co. 
Dahlgren  &  Steger 
J.  Engel  &  Co. 
H.  W.  Foote  &  Co. 
Russell  &  Evans  Co. 
Kleinschmidt  &  Co. 
Fuchs  &  Co. 
Yarwood  &  Lyon 
Anderson  Bros. 
Safford  &  Sons 
Colby  Piano  Co. 
A.  Reed  &  Sons 
J.  L.  Mahan 

H.  C.  Schomacker  &  Co. 
Pelton  &  Pomeroy 
Cross  &  Day 

64 


^atrtcft  S^o^epf)  i^ealp 


Merrill  &  Brennan  H.  L.  Story  &  Co. 
Schomacker  Piano  Manu-  Mason  &HamlinOrgan  Co. 

facturing  Co.  Ayres  &  Wygant 

Pelton,  Pomeroy  &  Cross  Haines-Whitney  Co. 

Cross  &  Ambuhl  Knauer  Bros. 

Haines  Bros.  E.  J.  Cubley 
Derrick,  Felgemaker  &  Co.  W.  F.  Shaw 

Lyon,  Potter  &  Co.  John  Molter 

C.  J.  Whitney  E.  A.  Benson 

W.  T.  Reid  Butterfield  &  Co. 

F.  S.  Chandler  &  Co.  J.  W.  Kennicott 

J.  W.  Pepper  Horace  Branch 

Molter  &  WurHtzer  G.  Schaff  &  Bro. 

D.  P.  Faulds  Carlestedt  Bros. 

V.  C.  Taylor  Hardnian,  Peck  &  Co. 

J.  H.  Wolcott  R.  H.  Rodda 

Schafif  Bros.  Piano  Co.  Root  &  Sons  Music  Co. 

R.  T.  Martin  Root  &  Cady 

Rintleman  &  Co.  Geo.  F.  Root  &  Sons 

Curtiss  &  Mayer  Root  &  Lewis 

Benjamin  Franklin  said,  ''  Three  removes  are 
as  bad  as  a  fire,"  and  Mr.  Healy  subscribed 
to  this  most  heartily,  and  added,  "A  change  of 
firm  name  should  be  avoided  at  almost  any 
cost,  for  such  a  change  causes  confusion,  pro- 
duces friction,  and,  worst  of  all,  tends  to  un- 
settle public  confidence."  In  his  later  years, 
perhaps  the  fact  in  regard  to  Lyon  &  Healy 
that  pleased  him  more  than  any  other,  and  cer- 

65 


^atrich  ^t^^tpf^  i^ealp 


tainly  the  one  fact  that  he  was  most  fond  of 
giving  out  in  the  course  of  a  conversation,  was 
that  no  savings  bank  in  Chicago  was  as  long 
established  as  the  house  of  Lyon  8z:  Healy. 
This  fact  was  first  called  to  his  attention  by  the 
receipt  of  a  letter  in  which  some  far-away 
stranger  said  that  as  a  result  of  a  voting  con- 
test, Lyon  &  Healy  were  credited  with  being 
the  oldest  established  firm  in  the  West. 

Mr.  Healy  possessed  the  true  newspaper  in- 
stinct: he  knew  what  was  news.  Also,  it 
goes  without  saying,  he  knew  how  to  keep  his 
counsel,  so  there  was  never  an  important 
act  upon  the  music-trade  fstage  that  he  was 
not  behind  the  scenes.  The  various  news- 
paper and  trade  paper  men  were  sure  of  a 
courteous  reception  from  him,  and,  on  proper 
occasion,  of  his  active  assistance.  No  per- 
sonal labor  was  too  great  for  him  when  called 
upon  by  a  representative  of  a  public  print, 
yet  he  pressed  modesty  to  such  an  extent  that 
the  condition  of  his  aid  was  always, "And  leave 
out  all  reference  to  me." 

His  kindly  attitude  toward  competitors  has 
already  been  spoken  of,  and  as  the  years  passed 
by  he  sought  with  increasing  diligence  to  smooth 

66 


^atritfe  S^o^epl)  i^ealp 


the  path  of  unfortunate  business  friends.  On 
one  occasion,  while  in  New  York,  hearing  that 
a  Western  music  house  had  been  destroyed 
and  the  business  badly  crippled,  he  at  once 
telegraphed,  placing  the  entire  resources  of  his 
house,  men,  money,  and  stock,  at  the  disposal 
of  the  unlucky  firm. 

A  prominent  Eastern  piano  dealer,  witnessing 
this  action,  asked,  "  Why  do  you  do  this  ?  They 
are  not  customers  of  yours."  Mr.  Healy  replied, 
''There  is  something  in  business  besides 
money." 

"I  wish,"  said  an  eminent  judge,  "that  we 
had  more  men  like  P.  J.  Healy,  men  who  do 
not  hesitate  to  say,  and  to  show  daily  by  their 
actions,  that  they  are  in  business  for  purposes 
other  than  simply  to  amass  wealth."  His 
regard  for  the  "other  things  than  money," 
as  he  called  them,  built  up  within  his  business 
a  splendid  mental  atmosphere,  for  while 
every  clerk  knew  that  keen,  wide-awake  busi- 
ness moves  were  always  in  demand,  every 
clerk  also  knew  that  short  cuts  to  riches  or 
methods  savoring  of  the  sweat-shop  were  not 
wanted.  Schemes  for  jobbery  of  any  kind 
would  not  be  listened  to  by  him  for  a  moment. 

67 


^atricft  g^o^epJ)  i^ealp 


Of  the  love  and  veneration  in  which  Mr. 
Healy  was  held  by  the  trade,  a  striking  incident 
was  given  in  the  convention  of  the  National 
Piano  Manufacturers'  Association,  and  the 
National  Association  of  Piano  Dealers,  in  Buf- 
falo, N.  Y.,  in  1893,  when,  at  the  mention  of 
his  name,  the  three  hundred  delegates  broke 
into  long-continued  cheers. 

One  of  his  great  delights  was  in  making 
social  calls  upon  members  of  the  trade  in  Chi- 
cago and  distant  cities.  His  sense  of  humor 
used  to  prompt  him  sometimes  to  have  himself 
announced  as  Mr.  Breeze,  of  Windy  City,  111. 
On  one  occasion,  in  Brooklyn,  when  the  clerk 
brought  back  word  that  the  proprietor  ex- 
pected a  call  from  Mr.  Healy  of  Chicago, 
and  therefore  could  n't  see  Mr.  Breeze,  his  de- 
light knew  no  bounds. 

As  Mr.  Healy  grew  in  years  his  shyness 
became  so  extreme  as  to  become  a  source  of 
great  discomfort  to  him.  He  regretted  this 
characteristic  exceedingly,  for  the  false  impres- 
sion often  conveyed  to  those  who  did  not  know 
of  his  supersensitiveness.  The  evil  of  insom- 
nia also  gave  him  much  trouble,  so  that  some- 
times for  weeks  at  a  time  his  life  was  one  long 

68 


^^atricft  ^o^tpf^  1$ca\p 


martyrdom.  "And  yet,"  he  used  to  say,  with  a 
smile,  "  I  get  no  sympathy  because  my  complex- 
ion is  ruddy."  In  fact,  he  often  appeared  in 
the  pink  of  condition  when  in  reality  he  was 
almost  beside  himself  from  sleepless  nights. 
At  the  dinner  given  by  Lyon  &  Healy  in  1901, 
in  the  Chicago  Athletic  Club,  to  the  delegates 
to  the  Piano  Manufacturers'  Convention,  at 
which  nearly  two  hundred  gentlemen  were  the 
guests  and  Mr.  Healy  was  the  host,  he  was 
forced  to  entrust  the  address  of  welcome  to  one 
of  his  junior  partners.  He  said  afterwards: 
"I  could  not  for  the  life  of  me  get  on  my  feet 
and  say  even  a  few  words,  though  never  did  I 
so  desire  to  put  in  good  strong  language  what 
my  heart  felt." 

Yet  few  or  none  of  the  guests  at  that  mem- 
orable dinner  left  Chicago  without  being  made 
to  feel  what  a  pleasure  his  presence  had  been 
to  Mr.  Healy. 

His  ideas  were  sought  upon  the  greatest 
range  of  subjects.  In  fact,  nothing  touch- 
ing the  wide  periphery  of  the  wheel  of  busi- 
ness seemed  to  have  been  overlooked  by  him. 
In  every  direction,  his  practice  was  character- 
ized by  the  most  advanced  thought.     The  line 

69 


^atritfe  S^D^cpl)  i^ealp 


of  action  laid  down  by  him,  if  followed,  led 
ever  toward  the  substantial  upbuilding  of  a 
business  edifice.  Upon  the  subject  of  dishon- 
est employees,  he  used  to  say,  "Let  him  go. 
Always  give  a  poor  devil  another  chance."  Upon 
the  subject  of  inventory,  he  would  say,  "Never 
mind  what  it  cost,  what  is  it  worth  (if  any- 
thing) under  the  hammer  ?  "  And  the  inflec- 
tion upon  the  "if  anything"  was  delicious. 
Upon  the  subject  of  buying  real  estate  and 
kindred  moves:  "One  business  is  enough  for 
one  man  to  attend  to."  On  seeking  favors  of 
any  kind,  he  agreed  precisely  with  Emerson: 
"Pay  at  the  beginning,  for  pay  you  must  in 
the  long  run."  On  the  ever-recurring  idea 
of  discharging  unpromising  clerks  and  filling 
their  places:  "It  is  better  to  shake  hands  with 
the  devil  you  know  than  the  devil  you  don't." 
Of  truthfulness  in  advertising,  he  said:  "I  was 
seldom  more  pleased  than  when  an  old  Scotch- 
man, who  happened  to  be  in  our  store,  said 
to  me,  '  I  see  ye  advertise  ye  sell  Everything 
Known  in  Music.  I'd  like  to  see  a  pair  o'  bag- 
pipes,' and  I  could  turn  to  a  clerk  and 
direct  him  to  bring  down  those  Edinburgh 
bagpipes  that  had  been  appearing  in  our  in- 

70 


^atticft  S^o^epfi  i^ealp 


ventory  for  heaven  knows  how  many  years." 
On  judging  abihty:  "Judge  by  results.  Many 
a  man  holds  his  peace  to  good  purpose." 


71 


p.  J.  HEALV 
Sketch  hy  ■"The  Music  Trades. 


CHAPTER  NINE 

DURING  the  last  decade  of  Mr.  Healy's 
life  his  appearance  in  either  business  or 
social  gatherings  was  always  enthusias- 
tically greeted,  for  his  presence  in  a  group  was 
a  signal  for  genial,  whole-souled  pleasantness. 
Stories  and  anecdotes  of  the  various  personages 
he  had  met  were  his  chief  happiness,  for  his  fund 
of  humor  was  inexhaustible.  Newspaper  men 
sought  him  constantly,  knowing  that  his  memory 
was  a  mine,  and  that  his  point  of  view  would  at 
once  appeal  to  the  sane,  wide-awake  reader. 
His  recollections  of  his  boyhood's  teacher,  the 
celebrated  Oliver  Optic,  were  eagerly  pub- 
lished, and  many  anecdotes  of  men  prom- 
inent either  in  music  or  in  business  were  first 
given  publicity  by  him. 

But  if  Mr.  Healy  showed  the  keenest  inter- 
est in  the  notable  actions  and  sayings  of  his 
confreres,  he  was  himself  the  subject  of  many 
an  interesting  story.  No  effort  was  made  to 
record  these  anecdotes,  unfortunately,  though, 
as  is  so  often  the  case,  trifles  light  as  air  were 
more  characteristic  than  the  noteworthy  actions 
lingering  in  the  memory. 

73 


^atricft  S^o^epl)  i^ealp 


Mr.  Healy's  favorite  story  was  David  Harum, 
and  his  favorite  play,  Joe  Jefferson's  *'Rip 
Van  Winkle,"  both  reproductions  of  every-day 
life,  enjoying  their  vitality  by  reason  of  their 
perfect  reflection  of  the  lovable  strength  and 
equally  lovable  weakness  of  human  nature. 
Truly  they  are  typical  of  his  own  outlook 
upon  all  mankind. 

In  speaking  of  Mr.  Healy,  the  Chicago  Rec- 
ord-Herald related  this  characteristic  incident: 

"His  charity  was  wide  and  practical.  Re- 
cently his  secretary  was  asked  why  a  certain 
charity  committee  was  closeted  with  him,  as 
the  same  committee  had  been  there  a  few  morn- 
ings before. 

"Well,"  the  secretary  said,  "Mr.  Healy  gave 
them  a  carriage  the  last  time  they  were  here, 
and  to-day  they  came  for  the  horses." 

An  anecdote  of  the  early  days  that  made 
an  indelible  impression  upon  one  young  man: 

One  day  one  of  the  young  men  of  the 
house  was  sent  to  a  small  town  in  Illinois  to 
get  the  settlement  of  an  account  of  some  seven 
hundred  dollars  which  was  owing  by  a  firm 
that  gave  evidence  of  a  shaky  financial  con- 
dition.   This  young  man  went  to  the  town, 

74 


^atricfe  S^o^epl^  i^ealp 


was  met  by  the  debtor,  and  spent  a  very 
pleasant  day  driving  about  seeing  the  country, 
meeting  prominent  citizens,  dining  with  the 
family,  etc.,  etc.  The  debtor  assured  him 
that  Lyon  &  Healy  had  no  cause  for  uneasiness, 
that  everything  was  all  right,  and  at  five  o'clock 
sent  the  young  man  home  well  pleased  with  his 
day's  work.  Next  morning  when  telling  of  his 
adventures  to  Mr.  Healy,  the  young  man  said, 
"Somehow  the  story  had  a  kind  of  hollow 
sound."  Mr.  Healy  walked  up  and  down  while 
it  was  being  recited,  swinging  his  pen  in  his 
left  hand,  as  was  his  habit.  At  the  conclusion 
of  the    report,  he   quietly   remarked: 

"The  King  of  France  and  forty  thousand  men, 
Marched  up  the  hill,  and  then  marched  down  again." 

And  without  another  word  retired  to  his  pri- 
vate office.  The  next  day  came  news  of  the 
failure  of  the  Illinois  firm. 

A  month  later  this  same  young  man  was 
sent  out  on  a  simUar  quest  to  a  small  town  in 
Wisconsin.  The  following  morning  he  re- 
turned, and  without  comment  handed  to  Mr. 
Healy  cash  to  the  amount  of  the  claim.  About 
three  days  later  Mr.  Healy   came   out  of   his 

75 


^atricft  ^o^tp^  !^ealp 


office  and  said  to  him:  "Mr.  Blank,"  mention- 
ing the  name  of  the  head  of  the  Wisconsin  firm , 
"has  just  been  in  my  office  and  told  me  of  your 
treatment  of  him  three  days  ago.  He  said 
that  in  order  to  raise  that  money  he  had 
to  mortgage  everything  even  down  to  his 
chickens.  Don't  you  think  you  were  altogether 
too  severe?" 

The  young  man  said:  "Well,  I  don't  know 
about  that,  but  I  don't  'march  up  the  hill  and 
down  again' — not  more  than  once."  Soon  after 
Mr.  Healy  gave  that  young  man  greater  author- 
ity in  business  matters. 

One  incident  will  serve  to  show  Mr.  Healy's 
boundless  confidence  in  advertising.  In  the 
early  days  of  his  house,  about  1876,  he  made 
a  single  contract  with  an  advertising  agency 
to  advertise  band  instruments  to  the  amount 
of  fifteen  thousand  dollars.  This  was  a  very 
large  sum  thirty  odd  years  ago  to  the  young 
house,  and  Mr.  Healy  said  it  completely  stag- 
gered some  of  his  associates  when  he  reported 
his  action.  "Did  it  pay?"  he  was  asked  in  the 
year  1901,  twenty-five  years  later.  "Well,"  he 
replied,  "the  returns  are  not  all  in  yet." 

There  is  more  than  a  bit  of  pleasantry  here. 
76 


For  Lyon  &  Healy  have  done  the  largest  band- 
instrument  business  in  America  for  a  generation. 
Why?  Because,  no  doubt,  of  that  very  contract 
other  equally  daring  moves  were  made  in  the 
early  days. 

"What  do  you  think  of  the  effort  of  Blank 
to  make  an  artistic  piano?"  he  was  once  asked. 
Quick  as  a  flash  he  replied:  "He  will  change  a 
first-class  second-class  piano  into  a  second-class 
first-class  piano." 

Mr.  Healy  amassed  a  fine  library.  His  taste 
for  reading  naturally  ran  along  extremely  solid 
lines,  and  his  knowledge  of  the  world's  his- 
tory was  gleaned  from  a  hundred  sources.  For 
Thomas  Babington  Macaulay's  narratives  and 
style  he  had  great  admiration.  No  detail  was 
too  small  to  interest  him  when  he  undertook  to 
read  up  on  a  subject,  no  speculation  too  great 
to  discourage  him  in  following  the  master 
minds  of  literature.  As  in  everything  else,  he 
had  his  bon  mot  in  connection  with  his  reading. 
"  Of  all  my  books,"  he  said,  "  Gibbon's '  Decline 
and  Fall  of  the  Roman  Empire'  is  the  most  valu- 
able.    It  usually  puts  me  to  sleep." 

No  pen-picture  of  P.  J.  Healy  would  be 
complete  without  a  mention  of  his  famous  little 

77 


^atricft  g^o^epl)  i^ealp 


black-covered  pocket  memorandum-books . 
One  of  these  books  was  his  constant  compan- 
ion, and  before  answering  any  question  per- 
taining to  his  business  it  was  his  wont  to  refer 
to  it.  Each  of  these  books,  and  there  were 
some  forty  in  all,  was  filled  with  the  smallest, 
finest  writing  and  figures  imaginable.  Each 
book  contained  a  resume  of  preceding  years, 
and  complex  tables  exhibiting  an  account  in 
detail  of  the  current  year's  transactions.  To 
examine  one  was  a  liberal  education  in  the 
upbuilding  of  a  great  mercantile  business.  But 
the  labor  was  almost  incredible.  Mr.  Healy 
was  asked  how  he  found  time  to  compile 
these  books.  "All  done,"  he  said,  with  great 
sadness  in  his  voice,  "by  candle-light.  While 
others  amused  themselves  I  labored." 


78 


p.   I.  HEALY  AT  THE  ACE  OE  b2 


CHAPTER  TEN 

F^  J.  HEALY  died  April  3,  1905,  a  few 
,  days  after  he  had  completed  his  sixty- 
fifth  year.  His  busy  life  came  to  an 
end  in  Chicago,  in  his  home  in  the  Kenwood 
Hotel.  For  two  years  his  health  had  been 
failing  and  an  attack  of  pneumonia  when  in 
California  hastening  the  progress  of  the  un- 
favorable conditions  which  had  begun  to  make 
themselves  evident  in  1903. 

His  death  was  a  peaceful  one.  After  months 
of  keen  mental  anguish  over  his  inability  to 
continue  at  his  life's  work  he  became  resigned, 
and  putting  his  affairs  in  order,  he  awaited  the 
end  with  calmness. 

His  family  had  been  summoned,  and,  together 
with  all  his  close  friends  and  lifelong  associates, 
were  with  him  during  the  last  few  days. 

The  funeral  services  were  held  in  Holy 
Angels'  Church,  in  Oakwood  Boulevard,  and 
that  immense  edifice  was  crowded  to  the  doors. 
The  manifestations  of  grief  were  truly  remark- 
able; the  outpouring  was  one  that  will  never 
be  forgotten  by  any  of  those  present.     Young 

79 


^atticft  S^o^epf)  i^ealp 


men    and    old    men,  women  and  children,  all 
mourned  a  true  friend. 

The  Pontifical  High  Mass  celebrated  by 
Bishop  Muldoon  and  the  deeply  impressive 
words  of  Father  Cox's  oration  were  no  mere 
matters  of  ceremony,  but  such  a  heartfelt,  per- 
sonal farewell  as  all  wished  to  say. 

The  honorary  pall  bearers  were  John  C. 
Haynes,  Charles  H.  Steinway,  William  Knabe, 
W.  H.  Currier,  M.  J.  Corboy,  E.  S.  Votey,  Piatt 
P.  Gibbs,  Thomas  Cratty,  W.  J.  Onahan,  and 
John  R.  Walsh. 

The  active  pall-bearers  were:  Charles  N. 
Post,  Robert  B.  Gregory  (by  proxy),  J.  P. 
Byrne,  James  F.  Bowers,  George  E.  Griswold, 
A.  J.  Keefe,  Benjamin  H.  Jefferson,  T.  F. 
MuUaney,  and  W.  H.  Leckie. 

The  interment  at  Calvary  was  in  accordance 
with  Mr.  Healy's  wishes.  A  granite  mauso- 
leum marks   the  spot  for  the  years  to  come. 

So  a  noble  spirit  passed  on. 
*         *         *         * 

The  seeds  P.  J.  Healy  planted  were  Integrity, 
Industry,  and  Kindness,  and  the  world  of 
affairs  owes  more  to  him  than  can  be  computed. 

For  here  was  a  man  who,  beginning  with 
80 


^jccerptg  from  €n6uteg 

nothing  but  his  strong  right  hand  and  clear 
brain,  built  up  the  greatest  business  of  its  kind 
in  the  world;  a  man  who  early  in  life  tasted  of 
the  sweetness  of  success,  and  yet  remained  un- 
spoiled and  unsullied;  a  man  who  carried 
honesty  to  that  rare  degree  that  he  scorned  to 
have  his  money  work  for  him  in  enterprises  in 
which  he  could  not  personally  sanction  every 
move;  a  man  who  was  loyal  to  every  trust  and 
to  every  friend. 

His  name  will  endure  when  names  of  mere  for- 
tune builders,  mere  amassers  of  wealth,  shall 
have  been  forgotten.  Far  greater  than  the  traits 
of  shrewdness  and  business  ability  he  displayed 
was  his  example  of  stern  virtue  in  affairs  both 
private  and  public.  He  was  not  clever  in  con- 
cealing things,  but  wise  in  having  nothing  to 
conceal,  and  his  spotless  character  will  illume 
the  pages  of  Chicago's  history  for  all  time. 


8i 


oBjccerpt^  from  Crifiute^ 

^OLiAN  Co.  (Board  of  Directors) — (New 
York  City) — "  Mr.  Healy  was  a  man  of  rare 
qualities,  steadfast,  courageous,  gentle,  and  of 
extraordinary  ability.  To  his  generous  spirit, 
his  clear  vision,  his  kind  heart,  and  abounding 
energy  is  due,  in  great  measure,  the  individual 
and  collective  success  of  the  men  he  had  chosen 
to  carry  on  with  him  his  life-work." 

Alexander,  William  A.  (Chicago) — "I  have 
never  known  a  more  lovable,  gentle  man,  in 
business  or  out  of  it.  He  was  the  one  man  in 
all  Chicago  with  whom  I  had  business  dealing 
that  when  I  met  him  for  the  purpose  of  trans- 
acting business  I  felt  immediately  that  I  was 
doing  business  with  a  man  whose  every  word 
was  truth,  without  insinuation  or  mental  reser- 
vation; in  fact,  he  was  so  gentle,  so  kind,  so 
fair,  that  a  business  relation  became  a  personal 
pleasure  and  a  matter  of  fellowship,  and  it 
seemed  a  pity  to  mar  the  conversation  by  being 
compelled  to  talk  of  business  problems." 

American  Art  Journal  (New  York  City) 
— "  The  social  side  of  P.  J.  Healy  was  as  well 
developed  as  his  ordinary  business  side,  and  he 
impressed  all  who  came  in  contact  with  him  as 
a  remarkably  well-balanced  man,  with  an  in- 
born touch  of  wit  and  a  touch  of  humanity  that 
were  distinctively  his  own." 

83 


(Qxttvpt^  from  Znhntt^ 

Armstrong,  George  Buchanan  (Piano 
Trade,  Chicago) — "  He  commanded  not  only  my 
regard,  but  my  reverence,  for  he  was  one  of  the 
noble  souls  who  stood  apart  from  the  mass, 
and  inspired  feelings  of  admiration  and  pro- 
found respect.  I  had  a  genuine  affection  for 
this  good  man,  and  mourn  that  he  was  so  soon 
taken  away  from  us. 

"  His  life  was  an  inspiration,  a  model,  a  dem- 
onstration of  the  practical  value  of  right  liv- 
ing, a  sermon  to  all  in  its  symmetrical  and 
natural  charm." 

Associate,  A  Lifelong  —  ''I  feel  the  loss  of 
P.  J.  Healy  as  keenly  as  though  my  own  father 
had  died.  I  consider  myself  a  successful  man 
now,  but  I  feel  that  by  his  taking  me  into  his 
employ  thirty-nine  years  ago  Mr.  Healy  not  only 
gave  me  a  start  in  life,  but  also  gave  me  an 
opportunity  of  developing  into  a  business  man 
under  the  most  admirable  tuition  and  guidance 
any  man  could  have  had. 

"I  was  seventeen  years  old  when  I  entered 
his  service.  He  employed  only  seven  men  at 
that  time.  I  was  with  him  through  adversity, 
and  also  through  many  successful  epochs. 

"  How  did  he  make  his  great  success  ?  Well, 
his  integrity  vied  with  his  far-sightedness,  and 
his  remarkable  understanding  of  human  nature 
also  accounts  for  the  result.  Another  impor- 
tant factor  in  his  success  is  the  fact  that  as  soon 

84 


<Qxtttpt$  from  Znbvitt$ 

as  he  saw  a  man  was  valuable,  he  increased  his 
responsibility  and  salary. 

"Mr.  Healy  was  a  most  remarkable  man  in 
many  respects.  Money  never  outweighed  the 
right  or  wrong  of  a  question.  He  did  things 
which  many  so-called  business  men  would  con- 
sider too  soft-hearted  for  a  keen  man  of  business, 
but  through  those  acts,  which,  by  the  way,  he 
never  advertised,  he  won  the  love  and  the  most 
loyal  service  and  devotion  of  his  employees. 

"IVIr.  Healy's  motto  was,  'Encourage  all 
young  men.  Try  them  out,  and  place  them,  as 
soon  as  they  show  value,  in  positions  where  they 
can  do  the  most  good  and  advance  most  rapidly.' 
He  knew  every  employee  better  than  the  em- 
ployee knew  himself.  He  never  resorted  to 
espionage,  but  watched  the  results  of  the  men's 
work.  Thus  he  surrounded  himself  with 
reliable  men,  men  whose  love  for  him  bordered 
on  idolatry. 

"He  was  not  a  musician,  but  knew  the  busi- 
ness from  beginning  to  end.  The  first  twenty- 
five  years  of  his  career  he  worked  at  all  the 
branches,  to  be  certain  that  he  missed  no  vital 
knowledge. 

"  Calmly  he  provided  for  all  possibilities  which 
might  present  themselves  after  his  death.  He 
was  a  religious  man,  but  few  knew  it.  His 
heart  was  larger  than  any  of  ours.  When 
worthy  men  evinced   fatigue   from   overwork, 

85 


€xtttpt0  from  €ribute^ 

whether  vacation  time  was  due  or  not,  he  would 
send  them  to  health  resorts  for  months  at  a  time. 
He  believed  in  paying  young  men  liberal  sal- 
aries, and  said  nothing  was  more  depressing  to 
a  striving  youth  than  a  lack  of  proper  comforts. 

"He  was  cheerful,  and,  being  Irish  born,  he 
had  a  keen  sense  of  clean  humor.  In  his  office 
he  surrounded  himself  with  the  pictures  of  his 
business  associates,  and  respected  them  all  even 
when  they  were  his  strongest  competitors. 

" '  They  are  doing  what  I  do,  merely  making 
a  living,'  he  would  say.  '  I  hope  they  also  desire 
to  assist  others  to  make  a  decent  living.' 

"  A  man's  failure  in  business  cut  no  figure  with 
Mr.  Healy.  If  he  liked  him  he  helped  him  on, 
alluding  to  the  times  when  he  himself  w^as 
depressed  through  adversity. 

"He  was  the  first  and  often  the  only  man  at 
the  bedside  of  the  sick  employee  or  the  em- 
ployee's wife  or  child.  He  had  the  greatest 
desire  to  assist  women  in  his  employ  to  leam 
enough  of  the  business  to  earn  a  man's  salary. 
If  other  business  men  followed  his  example  they 
would  meet  the  same  success  and  leave  the  same 
void  as  did  Patrick  J.  Healy,  the  greatest  man  I 
ever  knew." 

Ayres,  David  J.  (Keokuk,  la.) — "  In  Mr. 
Healy's  composition  there  was  no  guile." 

Bach,  Louis  D.  (New  York) — "  He  was 
a  leader,  and  a  man  of  strong  personality   and 

86 


<lBrcetpt^  from  Crifiute^ 

great  ability.    In  a  business  way  he  was  one  of 
the  best  men  the  music  trades  ever  had.' ' 

Bartlett,  E.  B.  (Chicago)—''  P.  J.  Healy 
never  beHeved  in  doing  things  by  halves.  In 
his  business  he  always  tried  to  make  the  output 
of  his  establishment  the  best  possible  quality 
for  the  money,  and  in  this  way  he  always  up- 
held the  standard  musical  instruments  and  did 
much  toward  maintaining  a  high  quality  in  the 
trade.  He  was  a  man  of  the  highest  character, 
and  will  be  greatly  missed  throughout  the 
musical  world." 

Bates,  R.  P.  (Principal  Chicago  Latin 
School,  Chicago) — ''  1  remember  the  impres- 
sion he  gave  of  sterling  worth,  and  unimpeach- 
able integrity.  The  first  time  I  ever  saw  him 
he  had  occasion  to  tell  me  of  a  proposition 
which  was  made  to  him,  to  which  his  reply  was, 
'You  can  never  make  it  worth  my  while  to 
break  my  word.'  " 

Banes,  B.  F.  (Germantown,  Pa.)— '' A 
great  big  man,  big  in  many  ways,  has  been 
called  home." 

Bill,  Edward  Lyman  (New  York)—"  Men 
of  the  East,  North,  South,  and  West  will  sorrow 
with  you  in  the  loss  of  your  grand  old  leader. 
P.  J.  Healy  was  a  man  who  shed  luster  and 
brightness  upon  the  entire  music  trade." 

87 


€jccetpt^  from  €tihntt$ 

Blumenberg,  Mark  A.  (New  York  City) 
— "  He  had  a  fine,  tracing  mind  that  could 
discern  and  anticipate;  in  other  words,  he  had 
judgment.  He  laid  his  plans  out  on  a  broad 
scope,  and  despised  to  encounter  any  narrow- 
minded  proposition.  Honest  1  Why,  he  could 
not  conceive  of  anything  else.  As  an  arbitrator, 
he  was  fair.  He  hated  the  factitious  and  de- 
spised the  pinchbeck.  His  word  was  absolute 
so  far  as  the  human  relative  ever  permits  it. 
Subterfuge,  evasion,  sham,  were  unknown  to 
him.  He  had  no  capacity  to  talk  for  the  sake 
of  hearing  himself,  and  hence  when  he  said  any- 
thing he  meant  it,  and  he  meant  it  thoroughly. 

"  He  died  at  the  head  of  one  of  the  foremost 
institutions  of  the  music-trade  industry  on  the 
globe,  and  his  name  is  secure  in  perpetuity.  It 
was  a  grand  scheme  and  it  worked  out  properly. 
There  are  not  many  men  who  have  accomplished 
within  such  a  period,  with  a  disastrous  confla- 
gration and  two  convulsive  panics  to  pass 
through,  such  a  definite  success.  A  phoenix 
should  be  the  emblem  on  his  tombstone." 

BoLAND,  Joseph  M.  (St  Louis,  Mo.) — 
'*  Such  born  leaders  are  scarce,  and  we,  of  the 
younger  generation,  should  prize  their  sterling 
qualities  and  endeavor  to  imitate  their  ex- 
ample." 

Bruno,  C.  (New  York  City)—"  He  had  a 
long,  honorable,  and  successful  career,  and  now 

88 


<&Xttvpt$  from  €ritiute^ 

parts  from  us  with  the  esteem  and  regret  of 
every  one  who  knew  him." 

Bush,  W.  L.  (Chicago)—"  P.  J.  Healy  was 
a  leading  man  in  the  musical  business  of  the 
West.  What  he  represented  in  the  piano  line 
everybody  knows;  what  he  represented  in  the 
music  trade  at  large  everybody  knows;  as  a 
man  very  few  knew  him,  for  he  was  so  many- 
sided  as  a  good  man  that  only  his  intimate 
friends  knew  of  his  manifold  charities.  He  was 
an  inspiration  to  young  men.  Not  only  the 
kings  of  commerce,  but  young  men  beginning 
business  always  found  in  him  a  good  friend 
and  w^se  counselor." 

Cable,  Hobart  M.  (Chicago) — "  The  suc- 
cess of  the  firm  is  due  to  the  honorable  business 
methods  of  its  founder." 

Chicago  American — "  Throughout  Mr. 
Healy's  long  business  career  in  Chicago  he  was 
known  as  one  of  the  city's  ablest  financiers,  and 
one  of  his  most  marked  characteristics  was  his 
rigid  uprightness." 

Chicago  Chronicle  —  ''It  is  not  often  we 
are  called  upon  to  chronicle  the  death  of  a 
Chicago  business  man  whom  we  can  so  unre- 
servedly praise  as  Patrick  J.  Healy,  who  was 
carried  off  by  pneumonia,  after  a  prolonged  ill- 
ness, last  Monday  morning. 

89 


(^Xttxpt^  from  €rtButc^ 

"  Mr.  Healy  came  to  Chicago  over  forty  years 
ago,  and  established  a  few  months  later  the 
firm  of  Lyon  &  Healy,  both  members  of  which 
have  now  passed  away.  During  all  those  forty 
years  it  may  be  said  without  the  slightest  flattery 
that  he  was  a  model  man  in  every  respect.  His 
prosperity  increased  from  the  first  day  of  his  long 
business  career  to  the  last,  and  it  was  all  accom- 
plished without  the  slightest  sacrifice  of  his 
integrity,  his  duties  as  a  citizen,  his  morals,  or 
his  amiability.  His  business  instincts  were 
almost  unerring,  his  business  honor  was  un- 
sullied, he  was  a  public-spirited  citizen  and  a 
man  of  unusual  evenness  of  temper  and  attract- 
ive personality. 

"It  is  now  claimed  that  Chicago  is  the  greatest 
musical  emporium  in  this  country,  and  whether 
this  is  exactly  true  or  not,  its  vast  musical  trade 
and  its  prominence  in  the  musical  world  are 
largely  the  result  of  Mr.  Healy's  genius  and 
management." 

Chicago  Daily  News  —  "In  his  own  busi- 
ness Mr.  Healy  grew  his  own  captains,  for  the 
heads  of  all  departments  and  employees  in  vari- 
ous responsible  positions  are  those  who  entered 
Mr.  Healy's  employ  about  the  age  of  sixteen 
years  and  grew  up  under  his  instruction." 

Chicago  Evening  Post — "  Mr.  Healy  was 
a  fine  type  of  the  American  business  man.  With 
his  great  head,  keen,  deep-set  eyes,  firm  chin, 

90 


<&Xttxpt$  from  CriBute^ 

and  classic  profile,  he  was  a  marked  figure  in  any 
gathering.  His  complexion  was  ruddy,  and  an 
air  of  life  and  good  cheer  lent  inspiration  to  all 
those  with  whom  he  came  in  contact." 

Chicago  Piano  and  Organ  Association  — 
"  Death  has  again  invaded  our  trade  and  robbed 
it  of  one  of  its  brightest  ornaments.  In  the 
demise  of  Patrick  J.  Healy  every  member  of  the 
industry  in  every  part  of  the  nation  will  feel  a 
deep  personal  sorrow,  and  the  industry  itself 
will  sustain  a  loss  that  cannot  be  measured  by 
words,  for  Patrick  J.  Healy  was  the  possessor  of 
one  of  those  earnest,  generous,  and  sympathetic 
natures  that  kindled  the  flame  of  friendship  in 
the  mind  of  every  one  that  knew  him,  and  the 
rare  and  noble  qualities  of  character  that  com- 
manded the  deepest  respect  and  admiration  of 
his  friends. 

*'  From  the  day  in  1864  when  Mr.  Healy  first 
located  in  Chicago  he  held  a  commanding  posi- 
tion in  the  commercial  life  of  the  community. 
Imbued  with  a  high  degree  of  civic  pride,  the 
interests  of  the  Chicago  people  were  close  to 
his  heart,  and  in  the  upbuilding  of  his  great 
establishment  he  was  adding  greatly  to  the  su- 
premacy of  the  city  of  Chicago,  not  only  as  a 
prime  center  of  musical  industry,  but  also  as  a 
prime  center  of  musical  taste  and  culture.  The 
value  of  his  successful  and  symmetrical  life  from 
this  point  of  view  is  thoroughly  understood  and 

91 


€jtrcerptj0?  from  €nbntt0 

appreciated.  Happily,  he  lived  to  know  the 
honor  in  which  both  trade  and  people  held  him. 

''  He  was  one  of  nature's  noblemen;  a  mer- 
chant and  manufacturer  of  the  loftiest  ideals. 
His  heart  beat  for  all.  His  benevolences  were 
magnanimous,  yet  ever  unostentatious.  Noth- 
ing gave  him  more  genuine  pleasure  than  to 
help  those  who  were  honored  by  enjoying  his 
confidence.  His  business  life  was  faultless; 
his  private  life  a  model  of  high  ideals  and  inflexi- 
ble integrity  that  we  may  all  follow  with  profit. 
His  whole  career  as  a  man  was  one  that  appeals 
with  irrisistible  force  to  those  who  place  beauty 
of  character  at  its  true  worth  in  the  affairs  of  life. 
Therefore  be  it 

'^Resolved,  That  we,  the  members  of  the  Chi- 
cago Piano  and  Organ  Association,  representing 
the  musical  industries  of  this  city,  deplore  his 
death,  and,  as  an  evidence  of  our  grief  over  the 
cruel  fate  that  has  removed  him  from  us,  adopt 
this  memorial  and  resolutions  unanimously. 

"Resolved,  That  this  memorial  be  spread  upon 
the  records,  and  that  it  be  suitably  engrossed 
and  presented  to  his  bereaved  family." 

Chicago  Record  Herald  — "  For  many 
years  Mr.  Healy  was  exceptionally  well  known 
in  the  music  trade,  being  personally  acquainted 
with  a  host  of  men  engaged  in  the  same  business 
throughout  the  country.  He  was  a  gentle  and 
unostentatious  man,  of  much  kindness  of  heart. 

92 


(Qxtttpt^  from  Wtxhntt^ 

By  his  employees  he  was  loved  deeply,  and  many 
of  them  have  been  employed  by  the  firm  twenty- 
five  years  or  more." 

Church,  Edmund  V.  (Chicago) — "  The 
late  P.  J.  Healy  was  a  unique  and  admirable 
figure,  and  certainly  one  of  the  most  lovable  men 
in  the  musical  business.  He  was  cautious,  but 
never  afraid,  and  his  word  was  as  good  as  his 
bond.  He  is  a  loss  to  the  musical  industry  and 
the  community  at  large." 

Clough  &  Warren  (Detroit,  Mich.) — "  We 
recognized  Mr.  Healy  as  one  of  the  most  re- 
markable and  successful  music  men  of  the  West. 
His  untiring  energy  and  close  application  to 
business  leave  a  fitting  monument  to  his  indus- 
try in  the  music  world." 

Cobb,  A.  W.  (Indianapolis,  Ind.) — ''  We 
have  not  the  least  doubt  but  that  his  memory 
will  be  a  green  spot  in  the  hearts  of  his  co-work- 
ers all  their  lives. 

"  He  will  also  be  remembered  and  honored  in 
the  music  trades  and  their  kindred  industries, 
as  the  pioneer  of  the  West,  who  blazed  the  way 
for  the  musical  art  and  all  that  was  good  and 
beautiful." 

CoLONEY,  Myron  H.  (Denver,  Col.) — "  To 
his  advice  I  owe  a  great  deal  of  my  success.  In 
fact,  I  loved  him  as  a  father,  and  I  feel  the  loss 
of  this  noble  man  in  the  trade  just  as  much  as 

93 


OExcerpt^  from  CtiButeief 

if  I  were  his  own  son.     His  noble  character  has 
had  a  great  influence  over  us  all." 

Connor,  Francis  (New  York)  — "  The  piano 
trade  has  lost  one  of  its  most  valued  members.'* 

Cooper,  J.  P.  (Cocoa,  Fla.)— "  He  will  be 
missed  by  many  for  the  good  he  has  done  while 
here  on  this  earth.  For  his  noble  acts  may  he 
be  in  peace  in  the  Great  Beyond." 

Crew,  B.  C.  (Atlanta,  Ga.)— "  The  trade 
loses  a  prominent  member  and  humanity  a 
great  and  true  example." 

Currier,  William  H.  (Toledo,  O.) — "  For 
forty  years  I  knew  Patrick  J.  Healy,  and  during 
that  long  period  of  time  I  learned  to  know  the 
really  fine  traits  of  his  character. 

"With  Mr.  Healy  it  was,  once  a  friend  always 
a  friend,  and  among  his  splendid  qualities  as  a 
man  was  his  consideration  for  others." 

Daniell,  C.  a.  (Chicago) — "  The  history  of 
the  American  music  trades  does  not  contain 
the  name  of  another  man  whose  life  affords  so 
large  an  inspiration,  or  suggests  greater  pos- 
sibilities, as  that  of  P.  J.  Healy.  No  young 
man  gifted  with  energy  and  intelligent  ambitions 
can  view  the  career  of  the  founder  of  the  greatest 
general  music  house  in  the  world  without  an 
added  faith  in  the  potency  of  work  and  in  the 
possibilities  of  the  trade  itself." 

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(Qxtttpt^  from  CriButeief 

Daniels,  William  H.  (Buffalo,  N.  Y.)— "  In 
the  passing  of  P.  J.  Healy  the  music  trade 
loses  one  of  its  most  noble  characters,  and  a 
man  that  every  member  of  the  trade  could  point 
to  with  pride.  He  was  beyond  any  question  the 
best  beloved  and  the  most  respected  member  of 
the  entire  music  trade  of  the  country." 

Davenport,  Ia.,  Democrat  — "  Absorbed 
in  business,  Mr.  Healy  did  not  allow  it  to  be- 
come his  master  to  the  exclusion  of  everything 
else.  He  had  thought  for  his  many  employees, 
and  they  became  his  true  friends  as  well  as  his 
loyal  employees.  He  encouraged  each  and  was 
helpful  to  each.  Many  are  the  instances  of  his 
thoughtfulness  and  generosity.  He  was  a  man 
of  many  and  constant  practical  charities.  These 
are  some  of  the  reasons  why  the  deceased  is 
mourned  in  Chicago  to-day  as  few  men  have 
been.  Patrick  Joseph  Healy  won  success  in 
different  lines  by  deserving  it." 

Davis,  Walter  M.  (New  York) — "  In  my 
experience  I  have  never  met  a  man  that  com- 
bined more  force  of  character,  great  business 
power,  intellect,  highest  integrity,  and  withal 
the  most  delicate  consideration  for  all  with 
whom  he  came  in  contact. 

"  He  possessed  one  qualification  that  I  have 
never  found  in  my  dealings  with  men,  and  that 
was  the  rare  gift  of  speaking  well  of  every  one, 
seeing  in  them  their  good  qualities  and  chari- 

95 


(^Xttt^t^  from  €txhntt^ 

tably  refraining  from  denouncing  their  human 
weaknesses." 

Dederick,  Louis  (Dayton,  O.) — "  Every 
one  who  knew  Mr.  Healy  loved  him.  " 

Dickinson,  H.  C.  (Chicago) — "  It  seems  to 
me  that  young  men  should  profit  by  the  example 
set  by  the  late  P.  J.  Healy.  Relying  wholly 
upon  himself,  he  developed  and  advanced  a 
business  in  the  line  of  musical  industries  second 
to  none  in  the  world.  He  was  a  remarkable 
alliance  of  sterling  integrity  and  enterprise,  and 
certainly  pointed  out  and  took  advantage  of  the 
opportunities  existing  for  young  men  in  the  music 
trade." 

DoLGE,  Alfred  (Dolgeville,  Cal.) — "  In  P. 
J.  Healy  the  music  trade  loses  one  of  the  strong- 
est members  it  ever  had,  and  the  community 
one  of  the  most  useful  men.  P.  J.  Healy 's  ca- 
reer will  ever  be  an  inspiration  to  ambitious 
young  men.  His  energy,  industrious  applica- 
tion, but  above  all  his  sterling  integrity,  pro- 
nounced sense  of  fairness  and  justice  towards 
everybody  with  whom  he  came  in  contact,  was 
not  only  the  primeval  for  the  immense  success 
which  he  achieved,  but  made  friends  for  him, 
who  not  only  loved  him,  but  followed  his  lead 
with  enthusiasm. 

"  He  has  done  his  work  well,  and  the  house 
which  he  built  will  stand  as  the  best  monument 

96 


(&Xtttpt$  from  €ri6ute^ 

for  which  one  could  wish.  In  the  history  of  the 
music  trades  he  will  ever  be  known  as  "The 
Grand  Old  Man.' " 

The  Dominant  (New  York  City) — "  In 
each  and  every  capacity  Mr.  Healy's  character 
stood  the  test:  patriotic  as  a  citizen,  honorable 
as  a  man  of  business,  and  loving  in  social  rela- 
tions. The  sterling  stamp  was  apparent  in  all 
he  said  and  did  to  those  with  whom  he  came  in 
contact,  inspiring  their  confidence  and  affec- 
tion, and  winning  their  esteem." 

Donnelley,  Reuben  H.  (Chicago) — "  I 
cannot  tell  you  with  what  regret  I  received  the 
news  of  the  death  of  the  head  of  your  house.  He 
was  one  of  the  truest  and  best  friends  I  ever  had 
— in  fact,  one  of  the  truest  and  best  friends  to  all 
of  his  friends — and  will  leave  a  vacancy  in  our 
lives  that  no  one  else  can  fill." 

Dorian,  John  H.  (Columbia  Phonograph 
Co.,  Chicago) — "  We  believe  we  but  express 
the  universally  accepted  sentiment  of  the  com- 
munity when  we  add  that  your  great  loss  is  a 
loss  to  the  community  at  large;  and  that  in  the 
death  of  Mr.  Healy  the  state  has  lost  a  citizen 
and  the  business  world  an  exemplar  of  strong, 
clean,  dignified  business  methods,  whose  great 
growth  and  general  success  in  both  personal 
and  business  lines  has  been,  and  will  con- 
continue  to  be,  an  inspiraton  beyond  computa- 
tion to  all    who   believe  that  loyalty    to    the 

97 


(Qxtttpt$  from  tCtiBute^ 

greatest  personal  ideals  is  the  foundation  stone 
of  greatness  in  business  as  elsewhere." 

Dougherty,  T.  E. — "  Mr.  Healy  was  the 
most  lovable  character  in  the  music  trade,  and 
at  the  same  time  he  was  one  of  the  very  ablest 
in  a  business  sense.   He  was  a  many-sided  man." 

Dov^LiNG,  C.  J.  (Chicago) — "  When  one 
sees  what  Mr.  Healy  accomplished  in  forty  years 
it  shows  the  marvelous  possibilities  in  the  music 
business  when  a  genius  directs  it.  He  was 
wonderfully  keen  and  mentally  alert,  and  his 
mind  had  a  judicial  cast  that  enabled  him  to 
estimate  quickly  and  fairly.  He  was  always 
willing  to  give  advice,  and  it  was  worth  having. 
The  musical  industries  have  lost  a  giant  in  the 
passing  of  P.  J.  Healy." 

Draper,  H.  L.  (Chicago) — "  I  have  always 
considered  Mr.  Healy  one  of  the  most  remark- 
able men  ever  engaged  in  the  music  industries. 
He  was  a  kindly  and  retiring  man,  wonderfully 
enterprising  in  business,  and  a  tireless  worker. 
His  loss  will  be  felt  in  Chicago,  not  only  in  the 
music  trades,  but  in  a  wider  circle  of  business." 

Drummond,  Henry  H. — "  Mr.  Healy  was 
one  of  the  best  men  that  ever  lived.  He  was  a 
very  just  man — in  fact,  he  had  the  highest  sense 
of  justice  of  any  man  I  ever  knew.  A  man  that 
would  almost  gladly  lay  down  his  life  for  his 
friends;  a  true  friend  of  every  true  man  he  came 

98 


€xtttft^  from  €nh\xtt$ 

in  contact  with;  a  man  who  trusted  his  employees 
and  never  doubted  them;  who  trusted  in  their 
integrity  and  their  character.  Such  a  man  was 
P.  J.  Healy." 

DuBBERT,  B.  (Cedar  Falls,  la.)—''  To  know 
Mr.  Healy  was  to  know  him  as  a  friend  of 
kindly  spirit;  and  in  business  relations  he  was, 
as  we  always  found  him,  conscientious  and 
honorable  to  the  last  degree." 

Dyer,  W.  J.  (St.  Paul,  Minn.)— "  Among 
all  the  business  acquaintances  and  friends  which 
I  have  made,  no  one  has  ever  made  such  an  im- 
pression on  my  mind  or  taken  such  a  deep  hold 
on  my  friendship  as  Mr.  Healy." 

Fischer,  Adolpho  H.  (New  York)— "His 
word  and  his  integrity  were  beyond  question, 
and  his  business  ability  was  very  great  indeed." 

Fischer,  Charles  S.  (New  York)—"  A  good 
man  and  a  good  life." 

Field,  Charles  (Manchester,  la.)—"  Some 
men  are  honest  for  policy,  but  Mr.  Healy  was 
that  way  because  God  made  him  right.  It  was 
his  nature  to  see  everything  on  unbiased  lines." 

Fox,  O.  L.  (Chicago)— "  Mr.  Healy  had 
the  capacity  for  loving  his  neighbor.  Therefore 
he  won  love  in  return.  All  men  do  not  have 
that  capacity;  whether  the  lack  is  hereditary, 
chargeable  to  circumstances,  or  is  a  personal 
fault,  it  is  there — an  unmistakable  incapacity. 
The  average  ego  has  but  one,  two,  three — a 

99 


€xtttft^  from  €nh\xtt$ 

very  few — affinities.  Rare  indeed  is  the  soul 
that  through  sheer  lovableness  is  able  to  com- 
mand love  from  men  whom  the  exigencies  of 
business  life  make  competitors;  yet  such  was 
P.  J.  Healy's." 

Freund,  Harry  Edward  (New  York 
City) — ''  To  my  mind  the  bigness  of  Mr.  Healy's 
make-up  was  shown  in  his  loyalty  to  his  friends 
and  his  aggressiveness  to  those  he  considered  his 
foes.  He  was  a  man  on  whom  you  could  de- 
pend. If  he  was  with  you  in  a  fight,  he  was 
good  to  the  finish.  And  if  he  was  against  you, 
he  fought  in  the  open  with  determination  and 
with  vigor,  and  was  prepared  to  let  the  verdict 
be,    'Let  the  best  man  win.' 

"From  the  youngest  employee  in  the  house  of 
Lyon  &  Healy  to  the  intimate  associate  and 
partner  of  a  lifetime,  the  leadership  of  P.  J. 
Healey  proved  an  inspiration  and  an  incentive 
for  greater  effort,  greater  work,  and  greater 
endeavor,  for  he  took  a  personal  interest  in 
each  and  all  of  his  co-workers." 

Freund  John  C.  (New  York  City)  — 
"  When  a  strong  and  forceful  leader  of  men 
—  for  P.  J.  Healy  was  that  —  passes  away,  it 
is  not  easy  to  make  an  estimate  of  his  character 
and  life-work,  especially  if  one  endeavors  to  do 
so  when  the  full  force  of  his  loss  is  upon  you. 
And  even  though  some  time  has  elasped  since 
Mr.  Healy  died,  I  find  myself  unable  to  write 
what  I  would. 

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(Sxtttpt^  from  €nbntt$ 


"  No  one  would  more  dislike  a  eulogy,  how- 
ever well  written,  so  I  will  attempt  none.  He 
had  sorrows  in  his  own  home  which  cruelly 
counterbalanced  and  offset  the  wonderous  suc- 
cess of  the  concern  which  he  had  done  so  much 
to  build  up. 

"  The  part  he  played  in  Western  musical  life 
was,  without  question,  the  largest,  the  broad- 
est, the  most  s}Tnpathetic  of  any  played  by  any 
man,  whether  in  the  musical  world  or  in  the 
music  industries.  The  larger  frame  and 
superior  vitality  of  his  old  partner,  George 
Lyon,  for  many  years  placed  Mr.  Healy  in  the 
background,  especially  as  IVIr.  Lyon  was  the 
member  of  the  concern  who  did  the  traveling  and 
came  East  to  New  York.  But  I  am  inclined 
to  think  that  it  was  Mr.  Healy's  good  heart 
which  induced  him  to  take  a  back  seat,  and 
efface  himself  even  at  times,  so  that  he  might 
not  jar  on  the  susceptibilities  of  his  business 
associate.  The  men  in  the  business,  the  heads 
of  departments  —  they  knew  who  was  doing 
the  real  work  of  the  concern,  who  was  the  real 
force  behind  it,  in  whose  heart-beats  the  living 
hfe  of  Lyon  8z:  Healy  concentrated.  But  the 
the  world  did  not  know  it,  and  for  years  I  did 
not  know  it  myself. 

"  Few  men  will  leave  behind  them  a  nobler 
work  than  he  accomplished  in  the  estabUsh- 
ment  of  his  great  house,  and  still  fewer  will 

lOI 


€xtttpt$  from  €txhntt$ 

leave  behind  them  a  record  of  helpfukiess  such 
as  Mr.  Healy  has  done. 

"No  monument  in  bronze  or  marble  can  equal 
the  monument  left  in  the  minds  and  hearts  of 
the  *  Lyon  &  Healy  family '  —  for  a  family  it 
is.  He  took  a  personal  interest  in  every  indi- 
vidual member  of  the  house,  and  though,  in  later 
years,  the  employees  grew  to  be  hundreds,  he 
knew  them  all,  and  took  an  active  share  in  their 
struggles  and  in  their  home  life. 

"  He  will  be  remembered  by  his  friends  and 
immediate  associates  always  with  affection ;  by 
his  business  competitors  he  will  be  remembered 
with  respect;  but  by  those  who  knew  him  as  he 
was  he  will  be  remembered  in  a  spirit  to  which 
words  can  give  no  expression." 

Geissler,  Louis  F.  (New  York) — "  Mr. 
Healy  was  the  grandest  character  that  graced 
our  trade." 

GoGGAN,  John  (Galveston,  Tex.) — "The 
music  trade  has  lost  its  brightest  ornament. 
May  his  soul  rest  in  peace." 

Grinnell  Bros.  (Detroit,  Mich.) — "  We 
doubt  if  there  is  another  man  in  the  whole  music 
trade  so  universally  respected  and  highly  es- 
teemed as  was  Mr.  Healy." 

Harger,  C.  B.  (Chicago) — "  Mere  words 
say  very  little  of  our  thoughts  when  such  a  man 
passes  onward." 

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^Xtttpt$  from  €ri6ute^ 

Hart,  F.  J.  (Los  Angeles,  Cal.)— '' Mr. 
Healy's  career  in  the  music  business  was  one  of 
honorable  dealing  and  straightforwardness,  and 
his  methods  serve  as  an  example  of  business 
rectitude.  He  meant  what  he  said,  and  he 
said  what  he  meant,  but  always  with  considera- 
tion for  others." 

Haynes,  John  C.  (Boston,  Mass.) — "  In 
sterling  honesty,  integrity,  faithfulness,  and  de- 
votion to  friends,  no  one  could  ever  for  a  single 
moment  doubt  Mr.  Healy.  In  every  quality 
of  character  one  can  mention  he  was  a  model 
man,  and  a  pattern  for  all  to  follow." 

Horn,  W.  C.  (New  York)—''  We  can  say 
nothing  but  good  of  him.  A  busy,  honorable 
career  is  ended,  and  the  world  is  better  for  his 
life  and  example." 

The  Indicator  (Chicago)  —  "  During  his 
long  career  in  Chicago,  J.  P.  Healy  became 
known  as  one  of  the  ablest  of  this  city's  finan- 
ciers. His  opinion,  always  freely  given,  was 
sought  daily  by  many  business  men  upon  the 
most  diverse  subjects.  But  the  most  marked 
characteritstic  of  Mr.  Healy  was  his  uprightness. 
Nothing  small,  or  mean,  or  double-faced  could 
endure  in  his  presence.  He  was  the  soul  of 
honor,  and  throughout  his  entire  life  even  those 
who  differed  from  him  recognized  in  him  a  just 
man." 

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€]ccerpt^  from  €tihntc$ 

Jenkins,  C.  W.  (Kansas  City,  Mo.) — 
"  Words  fail  to  properly  pay  tribute  to  a  man 
of  his  splendid  character.  It  seems  strange  to 
think  that  yesterday  he  lived  and  to-day  has 
passed  beyond.  Those  who  knew  him  well 
knew  Mr.  Healy  as  one  of  Nature's  best  men, 
and  loved  him.  Those  who  were  his  business 
friends  and  acquaintances  will  always  remember 
him  with  the  utmost  respect.  The  magnificent 
business  which  he  leaves  is,  and  will  continue 
to  be,  a  monument  of  good  and  lasting  influence 
in  the  music-trade  industry  in  general  through- 
out the  whole  United  States." 

Kimball,  Curtis  N.  (Chicago) — "  I  have 
always  felt  a  great  interest  in  him  as  a  man 
among  men.  He  not  only  leaves  a  monumental 
business  to  commemorate  his  memory,  but  I 
understand  that  his  right  hand  never  knew 
what  his  left  hand  did,  as  he  was  generous  to  a 
fault." 

Knabe,  Ernest  J.,  Jr.  (Baltimore,  Md.) — 
"  I  feel  that  in  Mr.  Healy 's  death  the  loss  is  not 
so  much  a  local  one,  but  rather  a  national  ca- 
lamity to  the  music  trade.  To  my  mind,  the 
greatest  trait  in  P.  J.  Healy's  character  was  his 
absolute  sincerity,  and  in  all  matters  this  quality 
was  with  him  paramount." 

Knabe,  William  (Baltimore) — *'  Mr.  Healy 
acted  as  a  second  father  to  me,  and  I  cannot 

104 


€rcejcpt0  from  €txhnttfi 

forget  it.  Mr.  Healy's  business  ability  in  the 
piano  trade  was  of  the  highest,  and  in  that 
respect  his  work  was  really  a  model  that  any 
man  in  our  industry  should  be  glad  to  follow." 

Knight,  W.  W.  (Denver,  Colo.)—"  Another 
good  man  has  gone,  one  who  was  great  in  the 
business  world,  great  in  friendship  and  good- 
fellowship,  and  great  in  purity  and  simplicity  of 
character." 

KoHLER,  Charles  (New  York) — "Mr.  Healy 
was  the  'grand  old  man'  of  the  trade  and  a  char- 
acter much  to  be  admired." 

KoHLER  &  Chase  (San  Francisco,  Cal.) — 
"  Mr  Healy's  clean  life  and  beautiful  character 
made  him  the  friend  of  all  who  came  in  contact 
with  him.  Mr.  Healy  has  always  appeared  to 
us  more  than  a  business  friend,  and  no  doubt 
this  feeling  is  shared  by  his  admirers  everywhere. 
It  is  well  with  him  now,  for  we  trust  he  has 
entered  into  his  reward." 

Krakauer,  Julius  (New  York) — "  I  feel 
the  death  of  Mr.  Healy  particularly  because 
of  the  fatherly  interest  he  took  in  my  son  and 
because  of  our  long  friendship." 

Krosser,  Mrs.  M.  R.  (Nauvoo,  111.)  — "  He 
was  ever  a  true  friend,  sincere  and  honorable." 

Lawson,  Chas.  B.  (New  York) — "  His  wise 
and  loving  counsel  must  ever  be  a  part  and  par- 
cel of  your  life." 

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€xtttpt$  from  €tibvitt$ 

Loyola  Sister  M.  (Boulder,  Colo.,  Mt.  St. 
Gertrude  Academy)  — "  He  was  our  lifelong 
friend,  and  was  most  generous  to  all  charitable 
institutions." 

Lyon  &  Healy  (Chicago)  —  Resolutions  of 
the  Directors  of  Lyon  &  Healy,  Chicago: 

A  Great  Life  has  Vanished  into  the 
Tomb  —  Whereas:  It  has  pleased  Almighty 
God  to  call  from  the  scenes  of  his  earthly  labors 
Patrick  Joseph  Healy,  the  esteemed  and  beloved 
head  of  this  house;  and 

Whereas:  While  we  bow  in  humble  sub- 
mission to  the  decree  of  the  Creator,  we  never- 
theless deplore  the  loss  to  our  house,  to  his 
family,  and  to  the  community  at  large  of  his 
valuable  life;  and 

Whereas:  The  life  and  career  of  this 
great  and  good  man  is  as  a  beacon  set  on  a 
hill  to  guide  the  way  and  mark  the  path  to 
success  along  the  lines  of  correct  public,  com- 
mercial, and  private  life,  therefore,  be  it 

Resolved:  By  the  Board  of  Directors  of 
Lyon  &  Healy,  that  our  heartfelt  sympathy  be 
extended  to  the  bereaved  family  of  our  de- 
parted head  and  to  his  business  associates  of 
a  lifetime;   and  be  it  further 

Resolved:  That  these  resolutions  be  spread 
on  the  records  of  this  corporation,  and  a  copy 

1 06 


(Qxtttpt^  from  €ri6ute^ 

of  the  same  be  sent  to  the  sorrowing  family  of 
our  venerated  and  beloved  chief,  a  man  whose 
head  and  hand  and  generous  heart  were  ever  at 
the  command  of  the  struggling  and  the  needy. 

Lyon  &  Healy  (Chicago)  —  Resolutions  of 
the  Stockholders  of  Lyon  &  Healy,  upon  the 
death  of  Mr.  Healy: 

Whereas:  It  having  pleased  the  great 
Father  to  call  our  dearly  beloved  President  from 
the  activities  of  this  world,  we,  his  lifelong  asso- 
ciates, assembled  in  council  together,  do  mourn 
with  profound  grief  his  absence  from  his  cus- 
tomary seat  at  the  head  of  the  Directors'  table, 
and  as  a  slight  token  of  our  sorrow  do  hereby 

Resolve:  That  in  the  death  of  Patrick 
J.  Healy  this  house  has  suffered  an  irreparable 
loss,  inasmuch  as  the  public  credit,  great  as  it 
is,  that  has  been  given  to  him  as  the  founder 
of  this  institution,  is  but  half  his  due;  that  we 
who  were  closest  to  him  found  most  in  him  to 
admire;  that  we  who  knew  him  best  found  most 
in  him  to  love  and  to  reverence ;  that  we  gladly 
subscribe  to  a  sense  of  personal  gratitude  for 
the  magnificent  ideals  of  commercial  life  which 
he  set  before  us;  that,  looking  back  through 
a  vista  of  many  years,  we  realize  that  our 
President  possessed  a  keenness  of  intelligence 
such  as  is  given  to  but  few  men  in  a  generation, 
and  that  to  this  gift  was  added  the  still  more 
rare  and  still    more  precious  gift  of  a  heart 

107 


€xtnftfi  from  €tihntt0 

that,  in  very  truth,  beat  for  all  who  labored  by 
his  side,  even  the  humblest.     And  be  it  further 

Resolved:  That  we,  the  Stockholders  of 
the  house  of  Lyon  &  Healy,  in  adopting  this 
memorial,  do  so  not  only  for  ourselves,  but  for 
the  hundreds  of  others  embarked  upon  this 
commercial  craft  who  will  never  forget  the 
Pilot  who  brought  the  ship  safely  through  the 
storms  of  nearly  half  a  hundred  years;  and 
further  be  it 

Resolved:  That  this  memorial  be  spread 
upon  our  records,  and  that  a  copy  of  it  be  suit- 
ably engrossed  and  presented  to  his  stricken 
family. 

Reverend  Thomas  E.  Cox.  (From  the 
funeral  oration.) 

**  It  is  such  a  character  as  this  that  shows  to 
the  world  that  simple  trust  in  God  and 
revealed  religion  are  not  incompatible  in 
this  modern  and  strenuous  age  with  great 
business  success,  as  the  late  Mr.  Healy  won  for 
himself  the  greatest  renown  and  achieved  the 
grandest  success  in  the  history  of  his  chosen 
calling  in  America. 

"  Mr.  Healy's  foremost  characteristics  were 
kindness  and  justice.  His  word  was  better 
than  his  bond,  because  that  allowed  him  to  do 
more  for  the  other  party  than  was  agreed,  — 
which  to  him  was  always  a  gratification. 

"  He  loved  young  and  ambitious  men  —  men 

io8 


<&Xtttpt$  from  €xihntt^ 

in  whom  he  saw  possibiHties  of  future  achieve- 
ment —  and  to  them  his  purse  was  always  open 
and  his  advice  freely  given. 

"  He  possessed  the  gift  of  intuition  to  an  un- 
usual degree,  and  was  quick  to  perceive  merit 
and  detect  sham.  This  gift  enabled  him  to 
select  able  men  with  whom  to  surround  himself 
in  the  great  establishment  over  which  he  pre- 
sided, and  thus  to  provide  for  its  continuance 
and  growth. 

* '  He  valued  loyalty  most  highly,  and  never 
withdrew  his  confidence  or  friendship  from 
those  who  possessed  it. 

**  A  most  distinctive  trait  of  Mr.  Healy's  was 
the  friendship  he  felt  for  his  competitors.  No 
man  had  more  friends  in  the  trade  than  he,  so 
highly  were  his  words  and  actions  respected, 
and  so  little  were  his  motives  questioned.  In 
proof  of  this  I  would  point  to  the  scores  of 
business  men,  not  only  from  Chicago,  but  from 
all  the  great  centers  of  the  country,  that  are 
here  present  to  testify  their  admiration  for 
him. 

"  It  is  right  that  we  should  love  our  calling  and 
our  work ;  if  we  do  not  we  cannot  succeed,  and 
our  Uves  will  be  failures. 

"  Our  friend  found  time,  with  all  the  cares  of 
his  great  business,  to  cultivate  his  mind  and  keep 
abreast  of  the  world.  He  was  an  omnivorous 
reader,  especially  of  historical  works,  and  had 
a  very  large  and  carefully  selected  library,  of 

log 


(Qxtttpt^  from  €tihutt0 

which  even  a  professional  man  might  well  be 
proud. 

"  In  this  respect,  as  in  all  others,  he  was  an 
examplar  to  be  followed  by  friend  or  acquaint- 
ance. He  was  the  keystone  of  a  grand  arch, 
and  now  that  he  has  passed  away,  in  the  ful- 
fillment of  nature's  law,  the  pillars  and  other 
parts  of  the  structure  must  move  closer  to- 
gether, so  that  the  organization  may  not  fall: 
this  I  say  to  his  family  and  to  his  business 
associates.  They  must  remember  that  unity 
brings  strength. 

"And  so  I  sum  up  the  achievements  of  this 
grand  old  man, — his  heart,  his  kindliness,  his 
stanch  integrity,  his  loyalty  to  a  friend;  and 
I  am  justified  in  saying  that  his  family,  his 
partners,  his  country,  his  trade,  and  the  whole 
community  have  suffered  a  great  and  severe 
loss,  but  I  predict  that  his  name  will  live  in  the 
hearts  he  has  won  as  well  as  in  the  business  he 
has  established." 

MoNTELius,  W.  W.  (Vancouver,  B.  C.) — ''  I 
valued  his  friendship  very  much,  and  as  an 
honorable,  moral  man  I  esteemed  him  very 
highly,  among  the  very  highest  in  my  list  of 
business  acquaintances  and  friends." 

MoRENUS,  H.  B.  (Chicago) — ''  Few  men 
can  look  backward  to  a  successful  life  when  the 
end  comes  as  could  P.  J.  Healy.  Few  men  en- 
joyed the  confidence  of  his  colleagues  and  com- 

IIO 


€xtttpt$  from  Ccifiute^ 

petitors  more  than  he  did.  The  manner  in 
which  funds  were  laid  at  his  disposal  by  a  number 
of  men  after  the  great  fire,  when  his  business 
premises  were  totally  destroyed,  was  the  most 
eloquent  testimony  to  the  man's  integrity  and 
the  degree  of  esteem  in  which  he  was  held  by  all." 

The  Musician  (Boston) — "  Mr.  Healy  has 
aptly  been  termed  a  maker  of  men.  The 
loyalty  he  won  from  all  those  associated  with 
him  is  proof  of  this,  and  other  proof  abounds. 
The  welfare  of  all  about  him  was  his  care.  He 
once  told  the  writer  that  he  could  never  separate 
sympathy  from  business — a  remark  that  an- 
alyzes well,  and  a  doctrine  which  is  a  splendid 
basis  for  action.  In  all  his  loyalty  he  remained 
ever  loyal  to  himself:  sincere,  sympathetic, 
persistent,  and  true  in  every  sense." 

Musical  Age  (New  York  City) — "  Another 
phase  of  P.  J.  Healy's  career  was  his  ability  as 
a  financier,  and  some  of  the  leading  citizens  of 
his  city  sought  his  advice  before  entering  upon 
any  large  undertakings.  He  was  known  far  and 
near  as  a  thoroughly  upright  man,  with  nothing 
mean  or  small  about  him,  the  soul  of  honor  and 
uprightness,  and  in  his  death  Chicago  and  the 
music  trade  of  this  city  loses  an  honored  citizen 
and  a  well-loved  contemporary." 

Musical  Courier  (New  York  City) — "  Mr. 
Healy  w^as  a  lovable  man,  and  a  very  benevolent 
one.     No  one  in  trouble  ever  reached  the  ear  of 

III 


<Qxtttpt$  from  €nhntt$ 

Mr.  Healy  that  comfort  or  help  in  some  way  was 
not  forthcoming.  He  loved  good  company  and 
he  loved  good  books,  and  he  was  faithful  to  the 
faith  in  which  he  was  brought  up  in  his  early 
life.  No  one  who  knew  him  could  help  respect- 
ing him,  and  his  business  associates  fairly  v/or- 
shiped  him;  nor  was  his  wisdom  or  justice  ques- 
tioned in  any  of  the  many  decisions  he  was 
called  upon  to  make  in  his  long  years  of  busi- 
ness activity." 

Musical  Times  (Chicago) — "  The  most 
greatly-loved  man  in  the  music  trade — Mr.  P. 
J.  Healy,  gentle,  kindly,  and  with  a  heart  whose 
bigness  took  in  all  mankind — has  passed  away 
from  present  things  and  gone  up  higher,  to  take 
his  place  with  those  whose  reward  is  rich  with 
blessings  because  of  the  good  they  did  while  on 
earth. 

"And  throughout  the  trade  all  over  the  coun- 
try there  are  honest  tears  at  the  loss  of  one  so 
widely  known,  so  universally  respected,  so 
heartily  loved. 

*'  It  was  not  Mr.  Healy 's  marked  business  suc- 
cess that  gained  him  his  enviable  position,  but 
the  beauty  of  his  character,  the  gentleness  of  his 
nature,  the  sympathetic  heart  that  always  re- 
sponded, the  earnest  interest  he  always  took  in 
others. 

"His  nature  was  noble  and  appealed  to  all  that 
was  noble  in  those  with  whom  he  came  in  con- 

112 


€xtttpt^  from  €n6ute0 

tact,  with  the  result  of  endearing  him  to  his  wide 
acquaintance  with  that  pecuHarly  tender  senti- 
ment that  is  as  rare  as  it  is  beautiful." 

Music  Trades  (New  York) — "  Another 
mighty  man  in  the  industry  of  music  has  passed 
away,  but  the  legion  he  organized  and  directed 
so  ably  and  so  long,  bravely  close  rank  and  move 
on,  cheered  by  the  inspiration  of  his  memory. 
It  is  for  some  men  to  lead  in  war;  for  others  to 
be  potential  in  peace.  In  the  latter  class  of  the 
world's  great  workers  was  the  late  P.  J.  Healy." 

Music  Trade  Review  (New  York  City) — 
*'  His  ideals  were  always  of  the  highest,  and 
throughout  his  entire  nature  ran  a  warm,  sym- 
pathetic current,  which  always  distinguished  his 
association  and  treatment  of  his  fellow-men. 
It  was  red,  generous  blood  that  ran  in  the  veins 
of  Healy,  the  dead  leader,  and  his  life  work  and 
accomplishments  will  ever  serve  as  an  inspira- 
tion and  a  guide  to  those  men  closely  associated 
with  him  by  friendly  and  business  ties,  as  well 
as  those  who  knew  him  in  a  limited  sense." 

National  Association  of  Piano  Dealers 
OF  America  Resolutions: 

Whereas,  We  have  been  called  upon  as  indi- 
viduals and  as  an  association  to  mourn  the  loss 
of  Mr.  Patrick  J.  Healy,  the  late  president  of 
Lyon   &  Healy,   of   Chicago,   111. 

Resolved:    That  this  National  Association  of 

"3 


<£xtnpt0  from  €riBute^ 

Piano  Dealers  of  America  places  upon  record 
its  deep  sorrow  over  the  death  of  Mr.  Healy. 
The  whole  piano  and  musical  merchandise 
industryof  this  country  must  feel  a  personal  loss 
over  the  demise  of  Mr.  Healy,  and  it  will  be 
difi&cult  to  fill  his  place. 

He  was  one  of  the  charter  members  of  our 
association,  and  its  first  vice-president.  We 
would  gladly  have  honored  him  with  the  office 
of  president  of  our  organization,  but  his  innate 
modesty  compelled  him  to  decline  the  election. 

In  his  own  city  of  Chicago,  Mr.  Healy  was 
always  foremost  in  every  good  deed  and  work, 
and  his  great  heart  throbbed  for  everybody.  It 
was  always  his  delight  to  help  those  in  need,  and 
his  benevolences  were  wide  and  magnanimous. 
His  business  life  was  clean  and  honorable,  and 
his  private  life  we  might  all  well  emulate. 

Resolved:  That  this  memorial  be  spread  upon 
our  minutes,  and  that  two  copies  be  engrossed, 
one  copy  to  be  presented  to  Mr.  Healy's  family, 
and  the  other  to  the  firm  of  Lyon  &  Healy. 

Percy  S.  Foster,  Com.     James  C.  Miller,  Pres. 

Nixon,  Hon.  William  Penn  (Chicago) — 
"  I  had  known  and  admired  P.  J.  Healy  for 
many  years  as  a  successful  business  man  and  an 
ideal  citizen.  Not  only  was  he  a  leader  in  his 
own  line,  but  he  was  consulted  by  men  of  affairs 
in  various  other  matters  of  importance.  He  was 
energetic,  resourceful  and  wonderfully  well  in- 

114 


(^Xtttpt$  from  €ti6ute^ 

formed,  and  had  a  judicial  mind  that  was  re- 
markably fair  in  its  judgment.  His  death  will 
be  a  distinct  loss  to  this  community." 

Parsons,  Charles  H.  (New  York  City) — *'  It 
is  given  to  some  men  to  win  the  respect  of  their 
associates,  but  to  few  to  win  their  affection.  I 
know  of  no  man  who  has  stood  closer  to  our 
hearts  than  Mr.  Healy,  and  to  me,  as  to  many 
others,  the  death  of  our  friend  is  a  personal 
grief." 

Peoria  Transcript  (Peoria,  111.) — "  The 
death  of  Patrick  J.  Healy,  president  of  the  firm 
of  Lyon,  &  Healy  of  Chicago,  was  more  deeply 
lamented  than  any  calamity  that  could  have 
befallen  the  firm  would  have  been.  He  was  so 
beloved,  so  revered,  and  so  worthy  of  the  feeling 
which  he  inspired  in  all  who  were  associated 
with  him,  as  to  leave  with  each  one  of  them  a 
sense  of  personal  loss  in  his  death.  In  respect 
of  his  memory,  the  firm  has  sent  to  its  patrons 
and  friends  a  deeply  bordered  card,  on  which  is 
expressed  the  grief  they  feel.  The  testimonial 
to  the  man  is  a  high  one,  and  one  of  which  to  be 
proud  for  those  who  knew  him." 

Piper,  E.  J.  (St.  Louis,  Mo.)— '' To  the 
trade  at  large  the  example  of  Mr.  Healy's  ca- 
reer must  serve  as  evidence  of  what  can  really  be 
accomplished  by  honest  effort,  sincere  work, 
earnestness  of  purpose,  and  honorable  dealing." 

115 


<&xtttpt$  from  €ri6ute^ 

Plessing,  Adolf  (Markneukirchen,  Ger- 
many)— "  His  name  is  immortal  in  the  music 
trade,  not  only  in  your  country  but  in  Europe." 

Pond,  Handel  (Ivers  &  Pond,  Boston) — 
"  The  dominant  thought  in  my  mind  as  I  con- 
template this  unusual  and  remarkable  man  is 
that  one  so  forceful  and  aggressive  in  affairs  of 
business  had  yet  such  a  tender  and  lovable  na- 
ture. He  was  well  named  '  The  Grand  Old 
Man  '  of  the  music  trade." 

Pond,  Warren  (New  York) — "  Mr.  Healy 
was  of  that  school  of  grand,  good  men,  an  honor 
to  their  friends  and  to  business." 

Powers,  Patrick  H.  (Boston,  Mass.) — "  I 
have  known  him  only  to  love  and  admire  his 
sterling  worth." 

Presser,  Theodore  (Philadelphia,  Pa.) — 
"  Mr.  Healy 's  death  is  a  great  loss  to  the  trade 
and  to  your  firm." 

The  Presto  (Chicago)—"  Mr.  Healy  had 
probably  the  most  remarkable  memory  of  any 
man  engaged  in  the  music  trade.  Of  late  years 
he  was  full  of  reminiscences  of  the  early  days, 
and  his  eyes  would  sparkle  as  he  told  over  the 
early  struggles  of  various  dealers,  firms,  and 
road  men  to  gain  recognition  of  their  goods. 
He  was  a  fountain  of  information  for  newspaper 
men  on  both  the  trade  and  daily  papers,  and  his 
recitals  of  incidents  were  given  with  such  de- 

ii6 


^xtttptfi  from  Crifiute^ 


scriptive  accuracy  and  nicety  of  language  as  to 
require  but  little  trimming  or  rewriting.  In  the 
days  when  his  house  was  smaller  he  used  to 
write  much  of  its  correspondence  in  long-hand, 
and  would  sit  up  nights  to  get  his  letters  done. 
The  writer  remembers  some  of  those  letters, 
written  long  ago,  in  which  Mr.  Healy  ran  clear 
across  the  page  without  lifting  his  pen  from  the 
paper — the  words  being  all  connected  in  a 
string  to  the  end  of  the  line,  but  spaced  wide 
enough  apart  to  make  the  manuscript  quite 
legible.'' 

Reed,  C.  A.  (Anderson,  S.  C.)— "  Our 
trade  can  ill  afford  to  lose  a  man  of  his  stamp." 

Smith,  C.  A.  (Chicago)—''  I  had  known  Mr. 
Healy  for  many  years,  and  I  never  saw  anything 
in  him  Kttle  or  dishonorable.  He  was  a  truly 
good  man,  with  a  mind  really  great;  a  capacity 
for  action  that  was  tremendous.  He  will  not 
only  be  missed  in  the  music  business,  but  I 
imagine  all  lines  will  miss  him,  for  his  life  in 
these  later  years  touched  so  many  other  things 
than  his  own  music  world." 

Stedman,  H.  S.  (San  Francisco,  Cal.)— 
"  His  labors  have  ceased,  but  his  good  works 
follow  after  him,  as  a  monument  of  faithful, 
painstaking  care  and  commercial  integrity." 

Steger,  J.  V.  (Chicago)—''?.  J.  Healy 
was  the  Dean  of  the  music  trade  of  Chicago. 

117 


€xtttpt$  from  €rtBute0 

To  know  him  was  an  honor  and  to  deal  with  him 
a  pleasure.  During  his  long  career  in  Chicago 
he  was  known  as  one  of  the  city's  ablest  finan- 
ciers. His  opinion,  always  freely  given,  was 
sought  daily  by  many  men  in  his  own,  kindred, 
and  even  distantly  related  trades.  He  was  the 
soul  of  honor,  and  a  just  man  par  excellence." 

Steinway,  Charles  H.  (New  York  City) — 
"In  the  death  of  Mr.  Healy  the  piano  trade 
loses  its  central  figure.  Mr.  Healy  stood  for 
what  was  highest  and  best  in  the  piano  industry. 
His  work  and  methods  will  far  outlive  him,  as 
his  character  and  ability  were  the  main  founda- 
tion stones  in  the  building  up  and  development 
of  the  piano  business,  especially  in  his  section, 
on  the  highest  plane  of  integrity  and  square 
dealing." 

Stetson,  Nahum  (New  York) — "  I  have 
known  P.  J.  Healy  for  over  thirty  years,  and  as 
every  one  who  has  had  this  experience  knows, 
it  was  a  privilege.  Scarcely  too  much  could  be 
said  about  him.  He  occupied,  not  only  in  his 
own  house,  but  in  the  trade,  a  peculiarly  unique 
personal  position.  His  integrity,  business  acu- 
men, and  his  affectionate  nature,  endeared  him 
to  every  one  who  had  the  good  fortune  to  know 
him.  His  example  is  one  that  can  be  held  up 
as  a  shining  light  for  the  present  and  future 
piano  men  to  follow." 

Story,  E.  H.  (Chicago) — "  His  rise  in  the 

ii8 


€xtttpt^  from  €nhutt0 

business  world  furnishes  an  excellent  example 
of  what  push,  industry,  and  absolute  business 
integrity  will  accomplish." 

Streiber,  a.  F.  (White-Smith  Music  Co., 
Chicago) — '^  We  feel  that  in  his  death  the  music 
trade  at  large  suffers  a  great  loss." 

Tapper,  Thomas  (Boston) — ''  He  left — for 
one  to  feel  and  to  remember — a  great  and  en- 
during impression  for  rectitude,  love,  and  tol- 
erance. These  are  qualities  for  which  any 
man  may  well  sacrifice  everything  else,  and 
accept  them  as  that  of  which  he  is  proudest. 

"And  the  life  of  such  a  man  shows  that  all  king- 
doms are  the  same.  Be  it  business  or  art,  a 
man  is  called  upon  to  do  one  thing:  to  search 
his  talent  for  its  divinity,  and  then  develop  it  for 
the  good  of  all." 

Tretbar,  Charles  F.  (New  York) — "  He  was 
a  great  organizer,  a  great  financier,  and  a  great 
business  man." 

Urchs,  Ernest  (New  York) — ''  The  achieve- 
ment of  that  grand  old  man,  the  lofty  example  he 
has  been  to  all  of  us,  his  benign  charity  in  thought 
and  act,  will  live  not  only  among  us  but  in  the 
history  of  our  trade  as  written  by  our  children's 
children." 

Walsh,  John  R.  (Chicago) — "  He  first 
came  to  Chicago  in  1864,  and  it  was  quickly 
seen  by  the  business  men  of   this   community 

119 


€xtttpt$  from  €tihntt$ 

that  Mr.  Healy  was  a  man  to  be  implicitly  trust- 
ed, and  also  one  who  could  be  depended  upon  to 
assist  in  promoting  the  interests  of  the  city.  He 
was  a  true  friend,  a  genial  companion,  and  his 
good  cheer  lent  inspiration  to  all  of  those  with 
whom  he  came  in  contact." 

Watkin,  Will  A.  (Dallas,  Tex.) — "  I  share 
the  general  feeling  of  esteem  with  which  Mr. 
Healy  has  been  regarded  by  all  who  knew  him 
best." 

Wheelock,  William  E.  (New  York) — "  He 
was  a  man  for  whom  I  had  the  warmest  feelings 
of  friendship,  and  as  a  business  man  he  always 
had  my  admiration." 

White,  J.  C.  (Newton,  Kan.) — "  He  was 
free  from  envy,  hatred,  malice,  and  all  unchari- 
tableness." 

Whitney,  Calvin  (Tutwiler,  Miss.) — "  A 
royal  good  man  has  gone  to  his  reward." 

Wood,  B.  F.  (Boston,  Mass.)—"  The  death 
of  Mr.  Healy  is  surely  a  great  loss,  not  only  to 
the  firm  of  Lyon  &  Healy,  but  to  the  general 
music  trade  also,  as  unfortunately  we  have  too 
few  men  of  the  caliber  of  Mr.  Healy,  and  the 
influence  of  such  a  man  goes  a  great  way 
toward  giving  a  character  to  the  business." 

Wright,  A.  M.  (Chicago) — "  The  person- 
ality and  life  of  P.  J.  Healy  stands,  in  my  opin- 
ion, as  one  of  the  unparalleled  ones  in  the  his- 

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4ixtttpt0  from  Crifiute^ 

tory  of  the  music  trade  or  any  other  line.  He 
was  never  spoken  of  as  '  Healy,'  not  even  by 
his  most  intimate  friends.  It  was  always  '  Mr. 
Healy  '  everywhere,  and  that  in  itself  was  most 
significant.  Those  who  did  not  like  him,  and 
if  such  persons  existed  I  never  met  one  of  them, 
were  wrong  in  their  ideas  of  business  and 
life. 

"  Mr.  Healy  possessed  the  tenderest  of  sensi- 
bilities, such  as  are  usually  accredited  to  women 
alone ;  at  the  same  time  he  was  able  to  deal  the 
ponderous  sledge-hammer  blows  of  the  giant 
smith  on  the  business  anvil.  Perhaps  no  man's 
death  has  caused  a  deeper,  more  lasting,  or  more 
universal  sorrow  than  that  of  Mr.  Healy.  One 
consolation  is,  that  behind  him  he  left  one  of  the 
greatest  of  monuments — the  gigantic  firm,  and 
group  of  well-trained  men  who,  by  following  in 
his  footsteps,  may,  each  of  them,  some  day  be- 
come his  protot}^e.  If  they  do  not,  it  will  not  be 
because  of  faulty  instruction  and  inadequate 
example." 

WuRLiTZER,  Rudolph  (Cincinnati,  O.) — 
''  Mr.  Healy  had  without  a  doubt  the  friendship 
and  esteem  of  the  music  trade  throughout  the 
United  States." 


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'*  Green  he  the  turj  above  thee, 
Friend  of  my  better  days; 
None  knew  thee  but  to  love  thee, 
Nor  named  thee  but  to  praise". 


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